#maybe once I move out of this state I'll make it from scratch

[marlequinncos]

update: I'm gonna do it lads

me: lives in the tropical region of florida where we're lucky if it gets below 70F/21C

also me: hey what if I made james fitzjames' cunty fur-lined coat from the terror which is a show about a doomed arctic expedition

[bun-z-bakery]

If you’re still taking requests, would you consider writing reader taking care of a sick dogday (and maybe him being difficult abt it?) plz? If not sorry to bother&have a nice day!

Yep! Currently I'm still taking requests! :3 I hope you enjoy!

Cold And Comfort

Dogday has been acting odd and it's gotten to the point where he has distanced himself from everyone, including you.

Naturally, you begin to wonder if you did something that hurt him and he felt the need to distance himself. 

3 days of this was enough and you decided a confrontation was needed. 

“Sunshine?”

You softly call out to him from behind the door. 

It's quiet, only the faint sound of breathing is heard. 

You slowly open the door, closing it behind you as you look around for your giant companion. 

It didn't take long to spot him wrapped in a pile of blankets, he even covered the window blocking the sun rays that he loved to feel on his fur. 

Carefully you make your way to him and gently shake him. 

“Dogday?”

You whisper to him as you take a seat beside him. 

Slowly he begins to wake up, you know from experience that Dogday is the type to enjoy sleeping in and will even sometimes pull you into a nap even if you have work around the house to finish. 

“Angel?”

He moves under the blankets and then slightly uncovers his face. 

He uses an arm to cover his eyes from the sun's rays. 

His voice sounded strained, similar to how it was in the factory. 

“We're worried about you, is so–”

He cuts you off with a series of sneezes, at first you thought it might have been the dust. 

The room was used as extra storage after all. 

But then you remember how he felt when you touched him. 

He was …scorching? 

“Are you ok?”

You try to keep calm as you feel around his face, but he can already sense your rising panic. 

You weren't familiar with toy anatomy, but this certainly wasn't something anyone warned you about. 

Surely he couldn't be sick, right?

Dogday takes a deep breath, you can hear a slight wheezing coming from his chest. That was all you needed to confirm your suspicion. He was in fact sick. 

“I feel terrible, I apologize for scaring you, my Angel.”

He covers himself again as he lets out a painful cough that makes you cringe. 

Seeing him in such a state made you upset. 

You try to think of all the reasons why he could've gotten sick. Allergies? 

“I don't understand how this could've happened.”

Maybe you were in contact with someone who was sick and you gave it to him. 

Does that mean there's a chance Poppy and Kissy are sick too? 

Whatever the case may be, he couldn't stay here. 

“Come on, let's get you out of here this dust isn't helping you!”

You exclaim as you try to pry him out of his blanket cocoon, but he refuses to move. 

“Angel, please don't fuss over me. I can assure you I'll be–”

He coughs before he can finish and you quickly remove the blankets. He begins to shiver once he's fully exposed to the air. 

“Dogday.”

You hold out your hand and he takes it, he's careful not to pull you down with his weight. 

Poor thing was shivering like a wet dog, but it had to be done. Aside from baths, he's never this difficult. 

You couldn't help but wonder why the sudden change. 

It took a bit of convincing, but you managed to get him back to your room and tucked him back into his blanket cocoon. 

“I'm not letting you move an inch.”

“Angel, don't worry about me…”

He attempts to plead with you again but unfortunately for him, you don't give up that easily. 

He was going to get better and you weren't going to let him suffer when you could help him recover faster. 

You gently scratch his ear, it doesn't take long for your gentle touches to put him to sleep. 

Quietly you make your way downstairs to make him a pot of soup. 

If he was able to get sick like a human, surely human remedies would work too right? 

Once you're finished you make your way back to your room with a bowl large enough to hopefully satiate someone as large as him. 

You thank Kissy Missy for opening the door and she gently closes it behind. 

Dogday must've been exhausted if he didn't hear you enter the room. 

You set the bowl on the nightstand and gently shake him once again in an attempt to wake him. 

“Sunshine!~"

You whisper to him and instantly his eyes greet yours. 

He begins to sniff the air before his eyes land on the bowl next to him. 

“Angel please, you didn't have to trouble yourself cooking for me…”

He said softly as he turned his gaze back to you. 

You sigh as you take a seat on the bed and turn to face him. 

“It was no trouble, you're no trouble! But you know what would be?”

He tilts his head to the side. 

“What?”

“No one eating the pot of soup I made.”

You jokingly pout. 

Dogday gives in and finally allows you to take care of him. 

Secretly he does feel guilty every time you need to cook different meals and buy extra medicine when the regular doses aren't effective. 

But he's glad it was his Angel who was by his side. 

Just like you had thought he did get better faster under your care. 

Soon enough he was back to his old self. 

‧₊ ๑˚.・

You lay in bed reading a chapter of a book as you unwind for the night. 

Suddenly you feel something heavy as your lower half sinks into the bed. 

“Hey.”

You chuckle as you hold the book to the side. Dogday lay sideways on the bed, he didn't fit in the bed laying sideways but he was in a good mood. His tail was always a dead giveaway. 

“I don't deserve you angel.”

He says in almost a whisper. 

His voice sounded much healthier than I did a few days ago, you've never been happier to hear his barks and howls again. 

“Is that why you were giving me a challenge?”

It saddens you to know how he felt but with his situation, you could see where he was coming from. 

“You've done more than enough for all of us. I don't want you to deal with more than you already are...”

“Well, your angel seems to think differently.”

You give him a reassuring smile and pet his head. 

“I think you deserve this and much more. Now please get some rest.”

You giggle at the last part as you playfully poke his cheek. 

“I've been resting all week!”

He laughed as he straightened himself to lay next to you.

“Hey, Angel?”

He turns his head to you. 

“Yes, Sunshine?”

You replied as you turned your head to face him as well. 

“Would you mind making that soup again for me?”

You quietly chuckle and put your book down for the night. 

“Sleep and I'll make all the soup you want until you're sick of it!”

You both laugh and Dogday quickly rolls over, hogging the blanket all to himself. 

You put your book on your nightstand preparing to say your goodnights but Dogday beat you to it. 

“Goodnight Angel!”

You playfully snicker as you try to stop his tail from hitting you. You couldn't help but smile at how the little things you do bring him the greatest joy. 

“Goodnight Sunshine.”

[jadeylovesmarvelxo]

I see you have your requests open. Maybe something about reader getting majorly injured? Like car accident or something. And the boyfriend Eddie hearing about it?

Request by @mugloversonly 💌💞

Eddie found out about your accident in the middle of Hellfire. The club was knee deep in the current campaign, he has thrown himself into it since you had been gone for two days at a cheer competition.

He never expected that the first time he would fall in love (after many cynical years of believing it to be a load of bullshit) that it would be with someone from the dark side.

But you were different from Jason and the rest, Eddie fell for you instantly as you did for him. Six months later and he was still in a blissful state. He missed you like crazy and he couldn't wait to see you tomorrow when you were back from the competition.

Suddenly Dustin's walkie talkie crackles to life and he hears Steve Harrington's voice.

"Dustin, I just heard from Robin who's friends with Alice on the cheer team. Princess was in an accident" Eddie doesn't hear much after that. In fact his blood runs cold and he immediately jumps into action.

"Gentlemen and lady, he nods to Erica' We will have to reconvene another time" all he can think about is getting to you.

All he heard was the word accident and he was taken back to when he heard the news that his mom died. He feels as numb as he did at six years old when he realised his mom wasn't coming home.

His eyes blur and he wipes the tears away hastily. No. You would be fine this wasn't like that. He wishes he'd asked how you got injured but Eddie reacted before he could do so.

He drives to the hospital in blind panic and argues with the nurse on reception that confirms you arrived at the hospital half an hour ago.

The frustration is building. He just wants to see you and hold you. Before he can argue some more Chief Jim Hopper has his hand on Eddie's shoulder to calm him.

"It's okay son, she's fine. I'll take you to see her okay?" Eddie nods as relief seeps into his bones.

"What happened?" He demands and Jim explains that when you and some of your cheer friends went for a celebratory dinner after winning the competition, a reckless driver nearly drove into your path. You moved at the last second but fell on the pavement and broke your arm.

"I've already arrested the little punk" Hopper confirms before Eddie can think of making the dickhead driver suffer.

Hopper has to restrain Eddie the minute he sees the guy being led out of the ward he was on in handcuffs, there's not a scratch on him and Eddie feels his anger rise again.

Only the thought of seeing you keeps him calm.

As soon as he sees you he's at your side at once. You're fast asleep, arm in a sling and he feels a rush to protect you from anything that could ever hurt you. He never wants to see you lying on a hospital bed again, the thought physically pains him.

Gently he takes your hand and reaches down to kiss your forehead. This wakes you and you smile brightly even though you must be in pain.

"Eddie" he exhales in relief when your beautiful eyes focus on him. He's so happy that you're awake but he's still furious at the dickhead who put you in here in the first place.

He's not a violent guy but if he ever got his hands on the asshole, then there would be hell to pay.

"Princess, I was so worried" a moment passes between the two of you where you both cling to each other, soothed by each other's presence.

"I'm okay, my arm is broken and I have a few bruises but I'm fine, might need my handsome boyfriend to play doctor for a couple of weeks" you tease and he chuckles, he'd do anything for you.

"I'll be the best doctor you've ever seen sweetheart, might spoil my patient a little bit though" (well a lot)

He will make sure you're comfortable, loved and that you don't have to lift a finger, this whole situation could have been a whole lot worse and he's just grateful that his princess will be okay.

♥️♥️♥️

[sl33paholics]

Let's Start The Day Together.

Retsu Kaioh x black!fem reader

Warning(s): mentions of mental health / illnesses (social anxiety n depression), body image issues, social anxiety

I've been having a shitty, exhausting week. I had a huge exam on Tuesday and am now off for the rest of the week until my other exam. Had a health scare, so that wasn't good lol so I wanted to make this writing piece for comfort. This is more of a self-insert, but lowkey made it an "x reader" in case people can relate

It's hot.

You can feel small sweat glands running down your face as you scratch your durag to relieve the itching you had from last night, letting out a huft as you lay on your messy bed trying to get comfortable. You don’t know if it was the fact that you just woke up or if you were going crazy but somehow, this felt like a dream.

You felt sticky.

You were in heat.

You shifted your attention from the ceiling to the small clock on your desk. It was after 1:30 pm.

Your body temperature felt way hotter than normal, especially since you had slept with a sports bra on with your long, baggy ass shorts. Your durag smelled like sweat, and your skin smelled disgusting. You didn’t want to go to work today. But at least the heat was tolerable. You tried to rub away some of the sweat with a shirt that's been sitting on your bed for days, but that only made it worse.

You groaned, sitting up and rubbing your temples. Your head was pounding, making you nauseous.

Taking a good look around your decent-sized spaced room, it was a mess. Sorta. It was a chore to clean up when you have containers filled with unused clothes that you don't bother to wear, boxes of items that you hadn't opened once you moved out those years ago, or even your books that you had yet to read. Your closet looked like there was never an organization to it whatsoever; your bookshelves were mostly empty except for your favorite books. You had no pictures of family that hung anywhere. Everything seemed to be in the same state you left it in.

Why bother to clean? You'd always ask yourself, no one visits. So why would you bother taking care of anything? Maybe you could take a shower. Maybe. Hopefully. You weren't sure what else to do to cool off, besides sleep. You slowly stood up, stretching your arms above your head while yawning. When you finally decided that it was enough to rest for now, you made your way into your bathroom.

At least you took care of your living room. It looks decent if you're ignoring the fact that it took almost a month to finally get off your lazy ass to do something about it. It smells nice and feels nice as if a huge weight got lifted off whenever you step out of your horrid room.

After you did your business, you couldn't help but look at yourself in the mirror. Baggy eyes, stretch marks from your arms to the lower half of your stomach, and your unkempt hair. As if you looked homeless. As if you were lost in a trance, you didn't hear your front door being unlocked and opened by someone who had a spare key. You didn't even realize someone was in your apartment until they walked in.

"Y/N?" a voice called out to you as you shifted your attention to the person behind you, Retsu standing at the doorway with bags in his hand. Restu must've come over here because he wanted to check if everything was okay. "Did you just wake up? Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt." He'd say, looking away to the side. You couldn't help but wonder if he wasn't used to seeing you in your condition. "I just wanted to make sure you're alright," he finished. His brows furrowed as he stared you dead in the eye. Was Retsu mad at you? That doesn't seem possible, but maybe he was just concerned for you? You shook it off, deciding not to dwell on it too much.

"Yeah," you replied awkwardly, putting your hands in your pockets. "I'm just feeling kind of under the weather right now... but I'll be alright." You trailed off, giving him a smile. As the two of you were settling down, you noticed that Retsu brought groceries and other things you'd need. You knew he was trying to make you feel better, so you appreciated it. You didn't even realize how hungry you were until Retsu mentioned food. How embarrassing, how did I forget about food? You thought, biting your lip sheepishly. It was quiet between you two. The only noise in the apartment was Retsu putting stuff away and making the two of you lunch. Once he was finished, he placed plates in front of you on the coffee table while he sat down across from you. You thanked him.

Silence. What was there to even talk about? You felt bad. Retsu did all this and took time out of his day to come to see you, only for you to not spark up a conversation. You let out a loud sigh. "Y/N." You looked over at him, noticing a soft expression on his face. It seemed to be a mixture of concern and pity. "Something's bothering you."

"Retsu, please..." You began. He held his hand up, stopping you immediately.

"Just tell me what's wrong."

"But-"

"No, Y/N," he interrupted sternly, "I've been texting you for days now. I haven't gotten one reply once. You're not looking too well, what happened? Your co-workers are saying you're not showing up to work either." Retsu would ask again. He was starting to sound annoyed. He leaned back on his chair, crossing his arm.

You sighed, knowing he wouldn't take no for an answer. "Okay. Fine." You looked back at your food, not sure what to say. The silence stretched for what felt like forever before you started speaking up again. "I'm just having one of those moments...y'know? I don't know. I don't think I left this building in a week?" You let out a nervous giggle, but you could tell Retsu wasn't happy with your response. "I don't have anybody who I consider friends that I can hang out with. I have work-friends. Not best friends. They do not acknowledge me outside of that, so I've just been in here in my room." You'd say turning your attention away from Retsu, your eyebrows frowning at what you just said.

Retsu didn't respond. You felt a pang of guilt run through you. He probably thinks you're a loser for talking to him like this. You rambled on how much it was difficult to wake up on time, and if you did, you didn't want to go anywhere for the day. You neglected your hygiene and physical appearance. Going on and on, you felt overwhelmed every time you looked in the mirror. You finally stopped your rant once you felt your throat clogging up and tears running down your face.

You sniffled, wiping at your eyes, hoping to catch them before you cry.

Retsu didn't move or speak for a few seconds, and then you heard him stand up from his seat. Before you could protest, you felt strong arms wrap themselves around you, hugging you tightly. You hugged him back as you felt your breath catch in your throat. "If it makes you feel better... I woke up around one o'clock. Last time, I woke up around six in the evening." You said with a chuckle to lighten up the mood. You let him go, but not before resting your hands on his chest to keep him at arm's length. You could feel your heart racing.

Retsu chuckled. "It does," he admitted. A genuine was spread across your face, the first one you'd smiled in weeks. You wiped at your eyes again before giving Retsu another hug. It was warm. You missed the warmth of him around you. He gave you another pat on your back before pulling away from the hug. He got on one knee before clasping your hand tightly. "I'm glad you told me what's been going on, Y/N." Retsu would say as you noticed his thumb was caressing on top of your hand. "And whatever's bothering you now, I'll do my best to help you." The sincerity in his voice was hard to ignore. You were touched by his words. "I'll stay the night here with you." Retsu would say, standing up again.

"You don't have to, I can take care of myself..." You tried to tell him. Retsu shook his head.

"I know, but that doesn't mean I can't watch over you, y'know." He gave you a reassuring smile as he offered his hand again to help you up. You took it hesitantly, allowing him to pull you up. "Let's leave in a few minutes. Getting fresh air is always good for the body." Retsu suggested.

You agreed easily, still feeling a little bit guilty for not opening up to him sooner. If only you had. But you were happy enough to have a guy like Retsu around to assist you during your roughest times.

[r0-boat]

helllooo fellow Male Byleth lover, could I by any chance have s/o taking care of a sick Male Byleth? I just want to cuddle this man, check his temperature, kiss his cheeks, rub his shoulders, hold his hair out of the way as he's sick, I want to PAMPER HIM. CAN YOU help me wAtEr mY crops please they are dying? I just want to be his wife -Ichi <3

OH MY GOD YOU'RE THE FIRST PERSON TO ACTUALLY ASK ME

I love you so much

Sick day

Author's notes:

Byleth is unaware on his crush on you. You think it's cute but you also think he doesn't like you so you're always willing to impress him.

Byleth was late to his lesson. As his You gathered his papers and finished grading the students tests but to your surprise he wasn't there. With no teacher the students looked to you.

'What could he be? he was never late to a lesson.' You thought The eyes of the students ready to learn the lesson of the day making you nervous.

"A- I'll be back!"

"The house leader is in charge, be sure to do your tasks for today around the monastery."

You sure hope putting the house later in charge would not serve to bite you in the ass later.

You make your way too Byleth's dorm room You're not once calling his name only to get no answer.

"The door isn't locked but..."

Worry pools in your stomach. You took a deep breath opening the doors to his quarters.

Byleth hardly even noticed you. His eyes closed breathing deeply He was in his casual wear his armor too heavy for his weaked body.

You press the back of your hand against his forehead that made him open his eyes.

"oh, did I oversleep?" He grumbled his voice scratching and terrible.

he was hot, burning up

"yeah you're not going anywhere."You stated placing your warm hand up to your forehead.

"but the lesson the students-" He protested.

"Professor please You're not well. You need to stay in bed and rest Don't worry about the lesson I-I got it covered."

More or less got it covered but.

His eyebrows furrowed on his otherwise emotionless face.

Of course you wouldn't know how to deal with the students alone. That is his fault perhaps the teachers were right he does coddle you a little too much.

He sighs "very well, the students can handle themselves"

Knowing that you'll have to deal with whatever the hell issuance due today later doesn't upset him as much as he thought it would. Maybe he's just distracted by the fact he gets you all to himself. The students always monopolize your time You are quite popular with them That's one of the many things he likes about you. He can't help but savor that he has you all to himself today. Call him selfish.

With his emotionless face you can't tell what he's thinking from the way he sighed He seemed disappointed. Way to make your boss hate you more...

His eyes widen when you brushed his hair out of his face You're gentle fingers caressing his skin. If he had a heart it would have quickened instead butterflies filled his stomach. A feeling he was not familiar to.

If he was here the whole time he must have not had breakfast yet. As you start to leave. His body moved on his own his fingers catching your sleeve He wasn't sure why he did this either when you looked down at him your eyes full of life and fire He stuttered.

"where are you going?"

"professor you need to eat you haven't eaten anything since yesterday have you?"

He looked away from you confirming your suspicion.

"I won't be gone forever, I'm just going to get you some soup from the cafeteria."You smile.

Byleth nods "can I get something spicy?"He said with a cough.

Are you kidding me? He's probably hiding in but his stomach will not handle anything spicy. One spoonful and it will all go up.

"no" You respond bluntly. "When someone is recovering from a sickness, spicy food is the last thing they need. Professor or not no one is exempt from this rule."

The irony was cute here you were nagging at your own boss The person you are supposed to be assisting everyday. He looks like a kicked puppy. Sad that he can't have his favorite foods.

Byleth stayed on bed rest for the rest of the day You had left to take care of some extra duties as well as help around the monastery along with the students. The students of his class came to visit him every now and then but he felt lonely without you. He always feels a little antsy when he doesn't know where you are. You're always getting yourself into danger. You always tell him you can protect yourself but, he'd rather you not be in danger at all. You did tell him to call you when he needs anything. And to be honest he called you a lot. A lot more he'd like to admit.

He heard a knock at his door "come in." His voice was almost as smooth as before still sounded like something was in his throat though.

His eyes light up when you're familiar figure walks through.

"I'm here with some medicine"You play the glass bottle down next to his bed. Despite the bitter taste he takes it all with no change in his face.

"The medic also said I should stimulate your muscles to help you relax." You smile.

That got his attention.

His eyes wide his lips parting his cheeks pink. The thought of you touching him was making him go crazy you make him go crazy and he doesn't know why. His eyes starting around making your eyebrows furrow with worry.

"um Byleth?"Your name rolls off his tongue instead of his usual nickname a very welcome surprise.

"Y-yeah hold on." He mutters sitting up from his bed his body still felt weak and hot but he was getting better. He had taken off his shirt a while ago, You try not the stare too much to his rippling muscles and scars that decorated it when he turned around You can't help but stare. He held his head down when he felt, delicate fingers rub into his bare shoulders. His back was just as muscular as his front. You feel dirty oggling and touching your colleague like this. You just want him to get better. So you push your sinful inner thoughts down and continue pressing your thumbs against his shoulder blades.

Dear gods you're so good at this. He's practically melting in your hands. He never knew how much he craved your touch till now. Years of hard physical labor and harder battles melting away with each roll of your thumb.

Exhaustion hit them all at once by the time you were done. He grown does he laid back down in his bed He can already feel his body turning into liquid as soon as he hit the mattress.

He couldn't keep his eyes open He wanted you to stay. He wanted you to stay here with him but he couldn't bring himself to speak he was so exhausted and weak the last thing he Saw was your perfect smile as you thread your fingers in his hair.

[phr3ia]

Love Game (Toji Fushiguro x Fem!Reader) [Chapter 21 : Problematic]

Toji gently placed you on the couch, his brows furrowed in concern as he took in your shivering form. "Alright, let's get you warmed up." he muttered, heading towards your bedroom. He returned a moment later, empty-handed and looking more flustered than before. "Uh, Y/N? Where do you keep your extra towels?" he asked, scratching the back of his head.

You didn't respond, of course, still lost in your feverish state. Toji sighed, turning back towards your bedroom. "Fine, I'll just...find one myself." he said, disappearing into your room once more.

Toji yanked open the first drawer of your dresser, expecting to find towels, but instead, he found himself staring at a colorful array of your undergarments. His eyes widened, and he quickly shut the drawer close, his face turning a shade of red that rivaled the brightest color of your lingerie.

Toji quickly moved on to the second drawer and finally found what he was looking for - a stack of neatly folded towels. He grabbed a few, storming back to the living room, "Seriously, who puts their underwear in the first drawer? That's just...that's just weird." he said, shaking his head.

Toji knelt down in front of the couch, "Alright, Y/N." he said softly, "I'm going to dry you off now, okay?" He gently unfolded one of the towels, his movements careful and slow as he began to pat your skin dry. He started with your arms, his touch feather-light as he worked his way up from your wrists to your shoulders. He was mindful of your feverish state, making sure not to press too hard or move too quickly, as he was afraid to cause you any discomfort.

Toji paused, his gaze softening as he looked at your face. He gently brushed a strand of wet hair away from your forehead, his thumb lingering on your cheek. "Y/N." and then he said softly, "What happened? Why were you out in the rain like that?" Toji's brows furrowed in concern. "And why were you crying? Your eyes were all puffy and shit."

Toji stopped, his hand still on your cheek, as he realized what he was doing. "Stupid. She can't even hear you." he chided himself, turning his attention back to drying you off.

As he continued to pat you dry, he noticed the trails of tears on your cheeks, and his heart ached at the sight. He had never seen you like this, so vulnerable and broken. It was a side of you he hadn't known existed, and it made him feel...uneasy.

"You look...terrible when you cry." he said, his voice gentle despite the harsh words. "I don't like seeing you like this. You were even crying in your sleep, for fuck's sake." He reached out, his thumb gently wiping away the tear that had escaped from the corner of your eye. "I don't know what happened, but just...just don't let it get to you like this, okay?"

Toji sighed, looking you up and down as he assessed the situation. "Great, just great." he muttered to himself. "Now I have to change your clothes. How the hell am I supposed to do that without seeing or touching...you know, the goods?" he said, scratching the back of his head, a blush creeping up his cheeks.  "I mean, I've seen plenty of bodies, but you're...well, you're not just some random body, you know? And I don't wanna accidentally grope you or something." He chuckled nervously. He paused for a moment, considering his options. "Maybe I should just leave you in your wet clothes and hope you don't catch pneumonia or something. No, no, that's stupid. You'd kill me if you found out I let you freeze to death. Fuck, why is this so difficult?" he said. "I'll just...grab some clothes for you and figure it out from there." he called out over his shoulder, leaving you alone on the couch.

Toji returned from your bedroom, his arms laden with a blanket and your pajamas. He approached the couch cautiously, his eyes darting from you to the blanket and back again. "Alright." he said, his voice uncharacteristically soft. "I'm gonna cover you with this blanket, okay? Then I'll...uh...I'll figure out how to change you into your pajamas."

As Toji carefully pulled your dress down, inch by inch, he was as cautious as a bomb defuser, making sure not to touch any of your skin. He was so focused on his task that he didn't notice the blanket slowly slipping off the couch until it was too late.

In a sudden whoosh, the blanket slid down, revealing you in your lacy underwear.

"Fucking hell!" Toji exclaimed, his eyes widening in surprise. He quickly averted his gaze, his face turning beet red. "Shit, shit, shit, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to...I mean, I was trying not to...fuck, this is so fucking awkward." he stammered, his hands flailing about as he tried to cover you back up. "I swear, it was an accident. I didn't mean to see...you know, the goods. Damn it, why is this so fucking hard? I've disarmed bombs with less fucking anxiety than this." he muttered, shaking his head in disbelief. "I'm sorry, I'm really, really sorry. I promise I won't look again. I swear." he smirked, clearly amused by the situation.

But then his heart raced as he realized that he would have to remove your bra and underwear as well. He bit his lip, his face flushed, and his eyes darted to the side, trying to avoid looking at you. "Fuck me," he muttered, taking a deep breath. "This is gonna be a fucking disaster." 

Toji gently nudged you aside, slipping his hands under the blanket to unclasp your bra. "Why on earth did you let yourself get soaked like this?" he asked, his voice laced with annoyance.

Toji's hands were shaking as he fumbled with the clasp. "Why the fuck are these things so complicated?" he grumbled, finally getting it unhooked. He quickly pulled it off, his face turning beet red as the blanket slipped again and he caught a glimpse of what he wasn't supposed to see. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!" he chanted, throwing the bra onto the floor like it was on fire "I swear it was just the sides!!!" Toji quickly pulled the blanket back up, covering you again. He took a moment to collect himself before tackling your underwear, which was proving to be even more of a challenge. He tried to pull them down, but they kept getting caught on something, and he couldn't figure out what it is. "What the fuck is going on here?" he exclaimed, his face now a deep shade of purple. After what felt like an eternity, he finally managed to get them off, holding them up in triumph before realizing what he was holding. 

Then you suddenly stirred awake, your eyes flying open to find Toji holding your underwear up in front of his face. Your eyes widened in shock, and you quickly glanced down to realize you were completely naked under the blanket. You gasped, your face turning a shade of red, and before you could even process what was happening, your hand flew up and connected with Toji's cheek with a loud smack.

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!!! TOJI FUSHIGURO YOU PERVERT!!!!" you screamed, your voice echoing through the room. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" You pulled the blanket tighter around yourself, your eyes blazing with anger and embarrassment.

Toji, on the other hand, looked completely bewildered. He stumbled back, his hand flying to his cheek, which was now bright red from your slap. "Ow! What the fuck?!" he exclaimed. "I was just trying to help you! You were passed out and soaked, and I was trying to change you into something dry! Why the hell did you slap me?!"

You glared at him, your cheeks still flushed. "Because you were holding my underwear in front of your face like some sort of weirdo!" you shouted. "And I woke up to find myself naked under a blanket! What was I supposed to think?!"

Toji opened his mouth to respond, but then closed it again, looking sheepish. "Well, when you put it that way..." he muttered, scratching the back of his head. "But still, you didn't have to slap me. That fucking hurt." he said, rubbing his cheek.

You were about to continue your tirade, but suddenly, a sharp pain shot through your head, causing you to wince in pain. "Ow...my head..." you groaned, your vision blurring for a moment. Toji's expression softened, and he took a step closer, his hand reaching out to touch your forehead. "Shit, you're burning up." he said, staring at you with a concerned look on his face. 

Toji quickly scooped you up into his arms, wrapping the blanket tightly around you. "Come on, let's get you into bed." he said. You let out a small yelp of surprise, but didn't protest as he carried you to your bedroom. He laid you down on your bed, pulling the covers up to your chin. "Stay here and rest, okay? I'll be right back." he said, turning to leave.

"Wait, where are you going?" you asked, your voice weak.

"I'm going to go buy you some medicine." Toji replied, looking back at you. "You're burning up. Let's not wait for it to get worst. I'll be right back in ten minutes."

"Okay." You nodded weakly, watching as Toji disappeared out the door.

As soon as Toji left, you forced yourself to sit up, your head still pounding. For a moment you were lost in thought thinking about why Suguru had stood you up, but you pushed it aside, not wanting to dwell on it. Instead, you focused on getting dressed.

You quickly put on the pajamas that Toji got for you, your hands shaking slightly as you buttoned your shirt. You couldn't help but wonder if Toji had seen more than he should have, and the thought made you blush. But despite your embarrassment, you felt grateful for his help. You just hoped that he hadn't seen too much.

•┈••✦ ❤ ✦••┈•

End Of Chapter 21 🥀....

@meowforluv @miizuzu @geniejunn @scorpiosugar @barelylivingirl

[goose-duck]

My Little Brother

~~~~~~

Remember how Dante and Laurence were left at My Street when everyone was at Starlight? The Shadow Knights were also not at Starlight, so, this is how I imagine Gene reacted to Dante losing his mind a bit

~~~~~~

"Dante hasn't called me in a while...that's strange for him, he usually calls at least once a week to tell me something.” Gene worriedly states to Sasha. Sasha just shrugs, “He's probably busy or something. Didn't he and the others go to that paradise island or something?” She sounds so sure of it that Gene almost calms down, he shakes it head though, “No…he'd call. No matter how busy he is that guy always has something to tell me about. Something’s wrong.” Sasha just groans in response, not wanting to deal with Gene’s stressed mood right now. “Whatever.” She quickly responds, making it clear she doesn't overly care. Gene gives her an annoyed look and lets out a huff, “I get that you don't think it's a big deal, but he's my little brother, I'm worried! Can't you understand that?” Gene sounds almost desperate to have her understand, he'd already talked to Zenix and he just didn't really get it, despite his best efforts. “Gene, listen. I haven't even had breakfast yet. If you're so worried why don't you go talk to Laurence? He's got siblings, maybe he'll understand.” Sasha just wants Gene out of her hair and that's very clear in her tone. “Laurence? Really?” Gene deadpans. “Who else are you gonna talk to? Everyone else left.” Sasha responds. “ugh! Fine.” Gene groans out and leaves the house, slamming the door.

Gene doesn't hate Laurence, not anymore at least, but that doesn't mean he likes the guy either. Gene begrudgingly walks over to Laurence’s house and rings the doorbell. He can hear someone walking to the door slowly, Laurence must have just woken up…maybe he'd woken him up? Whatever. Laurence opens the door, still in his pajamas, his hair a mess and some drool on his chin. “Gene? What are you doing here? And why so early in the morning? What do you want?” Laurence sounds annoyed, confused and tired. The way Laurence talks makes Gene a bit nervous, he doesn't want to bother Laurence, not when he's so obviously just woken up, but he needs advice. “Hey, buddy…” Gene nervously gets out, scratching the back of his head, a nervous habit. Gene quickly continues when Laurence gives him a confused look, “so um…I haven't heard from Dante in a while…you wouldn't happen to know how he's doing?” The expression on Laurence’s face tells Gene immediately something's wrong, Laurence looks irritated but also understanding. Laurence sighs, “come in, I made tea.”

Laurence moves out of the way of the door and Gene awkwardly steps into his house, feeling like he's not supposed to be there despite being invited in. Gene takes a few more steps in, taking off his shoes as he notices Laurence isn't wearing any and he doesn't want to be rude. Laurence closes the door, keeping the warm air out of his air conditioned house. It's cool, but not so cold you'd need a sweater, it's comfortable. Laurence walks over to the pot of tea and grabs two cups, “want the red or the green?” he politely asks his unexpected guest. “oh..uh, red?” Gene answers quietly. Laurence giggles under his breath, “how'd I know?” Gene snickers a little too, “guess I really am predictable.” “Yes, Edgy Mc Edge Lord.” Laurence jokes. Gene rolls his eyes but smiles, happy that the slight awkward tension has now simmered down at their friendly banter.

Gene sees a blue teacup, very fancy and traditional looking, he figures it belongs to Garroth but decides to make light conversation by asking anyway. “Hey, Laurence?” Gene asks. Laurence hums in response, “yeah?” “who's tea cup is that? It's so…fancy.” Gene asks, trying to be nice about the eccentric cup. “I'll give you two guesses.” Laurence jokes. “Garroth?” Gene asks the obvious. “yup” Laurence responds, looking at the strange blue cup with a soft smile before letting out a sigh, “I miss him…” Laurence has a sad but loving look on his face. “you really care about him, don't you?” Gene asks, giving Laurence a soft smile. Laurence smiles a bit, closing his eyes like he's imagining Garroth’s face, his dorky, crooked smile, “yeah, I do…” he softly whispers out, opening his eyes, still softly looking at that blue tea cup. Laurence shakes his head with a soft giggle, “that man…that strange tea cup…he bought it when we first started living together. He refuses to use it for anything other than tea.” “sounds like Garroth” Gene responds, deciding to lean into Laurence’s clear love and admiration for Garroth. “it really does.” Laurence sighs again before getting more serious, “so, back to why you're here?” Gene nods, “yeah.”

Laurence sets the cups down, the red one in front of Gene and the Green one in front of himself, sitting down at the dining room table. “you can sit you know…you might actually want to for this.” Laurnce gives Gene a worried yet kind look. Gene sits down across from Laurence, “that doesn't sound great…so, what's going on with Dante? How's my little brother doing?” Gene gives Laurence a worried, desperate look. Laurence sighs, “he didn't go to the island with the others…he was supposed to…but…” Laurence trails off. “they forgot him..?” Gene finishes Lauence’s sentence for him. Laurence nods quietly, “yeah. He's still here.” “so why haven't I heard from him?” Gene asks, now having more questions than answers. “Well…he feels abandoned…he kinda went a little crazy…he's got pillows with everyone's faces on them and he won't talk to me…like he doesn't know I exist…he thinks he's completely alone.” Laurence tells Gene the truth, knowing even though it's not good, Gene would prefer the truth than a lie that might make him feel better for a few hours. “I- he- is he- of course he's not okay…what do I do?” Gene holds his cup tightly, extremely worried for his little brother now. Laurence shakes his head sadly, “I'm not sure…” Gene just sighs, finishing up his tea and leaving Laurnces house after thanking him.

Gene decides to go to Dante’s house and see just how bad this is…and maybe talk some sense into him…maybe his brother will know he's real..? He goes to the door, ringing the bell. No answer. He rings it a few more times without answer. He gets annoyed and knocks on the door. The door just opens after the first knock, no one's there though meaning the door was just left open. Gene walks in nervously looking around, he starts looking for Dante, first checking the obvious rooms, the living room, kitchen and Dante’s room. He doesn't find Dante though. Gene then decides to check outside, he sees a few pillows with faces but no Dante. Gene then hears a noise fr Travis’ room. He quickly rushes to Travis’ room, swinging the door open aggressively before stoping and staring at his brother, holding a Travis pillow and crying. “Dante..?” Gene softly whispers out, reaching a hand out for his brother. Dante jumps at the sound of his name and looks at Gene like a scared puppy, “G-Gene..?” Dante mumbles out. “Hey…hey…it's me…it's Gene…it's your big brother…” Gene gently rests a hand on Dante’s head slowly moving it down to cup his little brother’s cheek, “hey, buddy…what's…um…what's going on here..?” Gene looks to the pillow then back at his brother’s sad, tired, tear filled eyes. “h-huh..?” Dante mumbles out, “th-this…is…it's Travis…yeah…this is Travis…it's Travis…Travis…” Dante continues to mumble about Travis to himself. Gene gets more worried seeing this, “Dante, buddy…that's a pillow…” Gene whispers to his brother. “No!! It's Travis! He's still here! He didn't leave me!!” Dante gets defensive, holding the pillow tightly to his chest and pulling away from Gene.

Gene sighs, begrudgingly agrees with Dante, not wanting to have his brother pull away from him like that again, “okay…okay…it's Travis…um…so…how have you been doing, Dante?” Gene sounds horribly nervous, he is, he's never seen his brother like this before. Dante calms down a bit having his delusions reinforced by another person, “oh! Me and my friends just had a big pool party! It's was so fun!” Dante starts to ramble about the “pool party” he had with his “friends”. Gene’s awkard smile slowly melts into a distressed frown as his brother continues to tell him about his recent “adventures” with his friends. Gene cuts Dante off, trying to act normal, “okay buddy, how about you call me and tell me about that later? It's been a while since you've called…” “oh? Has it been? Sorry! Been so busy! I'll call you on the weekend!” Dante says sounding disappointed in himself for not calling his brother for a while. Gene decides to make it a bit easier for Dante, “how about you call me every Sunday at 12? Does that sound good? Even if all you have to say is “hello” I still want you to call” “okay!” Dante responds with a smile.

“hey, bud?” Gene asks softly, “can I have a hug?” Dante nods quickly and wraps his arms around Gene. Gene hugs back, holding his brother like he may never see him again, “take care of yourself, okay? I get it might be hard right now, but please…just…stay alive…I want to be able to see you again.” Dante giggles, not understanding the severity of the situation right now, “obviously! I have to stay in shape for the ladies” Gene lets out a soft genuine laugh at his brother’s antics, “yeah, yeah, whatever you say little brother.” Gene smiles at Dante, just happy to see that even if he's not okay, he's still here. He'll have to find some way to help his brother, but for now just being there, being a real physical person Dante isn't ignoring is probably good enough for today. “I love you, little brother” Gene mumbles into Dante’s blue hair. “I love you too, Gene!” Dante hugs Gene a little tighter, happy to see his brother, even if he isn't consciously aware of the reason why.

[milkcanned]

Hiii, love to see a wlw writer ♡

Could you write some nsfw with Kalifa and a femreader who also works for Cp9? Maybe she infiltrated as a waiter at the same place as Blueno? I just really love Kalifa

one way or another

kalifa finds you off the clock, and though fraternizing isn't permitted among fellow cp9 members, this doesn't count, right?

ft. kalifa x afab!f!reader

thigh riding/grinding, dom!kalifa, sub!reader

word count: 700

a.n: gosh i love her. nami was right wishing for her as a secretary. i need a mature woman like her

You rush around flocks of drunken men as you head to the kitchen to serve mediocre bar food table by table. Really, you didn't know how you found yourself infiltrating as a damn waitress. Frankly, you were jealous of your fellow peers who were able to snag jobs at Galley La. Blueno's decent company, but you don't have much in common with him.

You have trays in both of your hands as you weave around drunks to your next table. You begin to set the tray down and dish out the food & drinks when you're bumped into, spilling drinks all over your uniform. A drunk man around your age grasps your waist to stabilize you, before asking, "You okay, sweetheart?" You grimace and bark out a "Yeah", pushing away from him to the break room. You untie your apron and huff out to Blueno, "I'm clocking out!" Entering the room to change out of your uniform, you once again bump into someone. "Oh, for God's—"

"Hello."

You shuffle back a little to give a genuine, tired smile at Kalifa, someone you found yourself accompanying quite often in your free time. Being the only women in CP9, the two of you were tight knit. Kalifa adjusts her glasses and observes your disheveled form. "You look horrible." She blurts, blunt as ever. You sigh, sitting on a bench. "Yeah, stupid guy out there bumped into me and had the gall to call me sweetheart." She frowns at this, adjusting her glasses once more. "That's sexual harassment." she states in a matter-of-fact tone. You hum in acknowledgment, but nothing else.

"I'll help you out of that." She advances towards you, glancing at your stained uniform. "Oh really that's—" You start, but she's already making quick work of getting your shirt off. Bold as ever. You slip off your skirt and glance up at her, but you find yourself looking at her unreadable expression. You really could never read Kalifa. Your relationship was strictly friendly, but her lingering touches confused you. You part your lips to say something and she narrows her eyes and dips her head a bit, tilting her head with a knowing, domineering gaze. You make the first move, pressing into her soft lips, taking in her cherry lipgloss.

She wraps a hand around your head and deepens the kiss, fogging up her glasses a little. You mewl into the kiss, grasping onto her blazer. She breaks the kiss, lipgloss smeared all over yours and her lips. "Let me handle you." She wipes away the residue and reaches for the waistband of your panties. "Please," you breathe out, peppering kisses on her jaw. Slipping your panties off, she leads you to stand in front of her as she sits elegantly on the bench. You climb onto her lap and connect with her lips again, her hands reaching around to unclasp your bra. You move to straddle her stocking covered thigh, quick to bump and grind on it.

She grabs your chin and pulls you away from her to mutter out, "Just like that." She moves her nimble hands to knead your chest as you move back and forth against her, huffing. "Please, Kalifa. Mm'need more." She feigns sympathy and pouts at you. "Need what?" She drawls with that smooth voice, smirking. "Need youuu.." You mutter, growing frustrated against her leg. She hums, bouncing her knee to grant you more friction, moving her hands to scratch down your back. Your clit bumps steadily against her leg, and you feel your climax approaching rapidly as she moves you up and down. "Kahh— Kalifa!" You cry, leaning on her shoulder. "Mm, are you close?" She smiles, licking the shell of your ear. You whimper in response, clenching your legs around her thigh. "Mm'coming!!" You mewl, feeling the dam inside of you break as your pussy throbs around nothing, slickening up her stockings.

She presses a kiss to your temple as you come down, sighing. You look up at her, as if to ask her, 'What now?' She gives you a knowing smile. "As a member of Cipher Pol 9, I must ensure all members are performing at their best." She reassures you.

[miss-celestial-being]

Kiss Me

✥﹤┈┈┈┈┈﹥✥

request | masterlist

✥﹤┈┈┈┈┈﹥✥

𝑝𝑎𝑖𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔: steve harrington x fem/gn!reader

𝑠𝑦𝑛𝑜𝑝𝑠𝑖𝑠: you and steve make an arrangement

𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠: fake dating, unedited, bad writing (as always), good luck trying to make sense of any of it :)

𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡: 3.3k words (the majority of this is probably the word book ngl)

𝑎𝑢𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑟’𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡𝑒𝑠: i have no idea what the timeline is so dont ask. hope this is an acceptable comeback (also if youre confused abt the tags, everything i write is plus size reader bc i myself and plus sized but its never explicitly stated)

✥﹤┈┈┈┈┈﹥✥

Book in hand, you walk through the halls, bundled in a sweater to fight the autumn chill. Aiming for your cream-colored locker, you can see the stickers littering the metal as someone bumps into you from behind, forcing the book from your hands and making you lose your page. You swear as you begin to bend down to pick it up, bumping your head against the person in front of you. You both pull back, lifting a hand to touch the aching spot on your forehead.

"Shit, sorry." A masculine voice draws your gaze upward and you lock eyes. You see your book in his hand, held out between the two of you. You take it back slowly, frowning as you see a smudge on the pages and a dent in the corner. You look up in time to see his eyes widen, looking at something behind you, before he grabs your face in both his hands and presses his lips to yours.

You stand completely frozen and only dare to breathe once he pulls away completely, his hands still planted on your cheeks. "I'm really sorry," he whispers, his breath mingling in the air between you. You notice now that he smells like he just came from the cafeteria; He had pizza for lunch, you note. You finally will your body to move and you turn your head in time to see a girl staring at the two of you, her eyes focusing on a spot on the wall as soon as you catch her. You turn back to the boy in front of you and nod in understanding. "It's fine," You say. He lets out a seemingly relieved breath, the corners of his lips twitching up into a half-smile.

You notice it falter slightly, his eyes once again behind you, and you rise on your toes to kiss him again. You grab his neck with your free hand and your eyes catch before the space closes and you let yours shut tightly. His hands snake around your waist as your mouths mold together, and when he pulls away, you're both breathless. He looks behind you once more, to find that the girl is gone, and his eyes are back on you.

"Thank you. Really, thank you," he starts, "I broke up with her like over a month ago and she's been obsessed with me. Keeps trying to get back together." He looks down at you, scratching the back of his neck nervously. "I, uh, I didn't catch your name." You let out a sudden snort and your face heats as you cover your mouth with your sleeve-covered hand. You tell him your name, doing your best to keep your voice even. "Well, nice to meet you. I'm Steve," He laughs softly as he speaks. A moment passes, your eyes not leaving his. "Hey, uhm, this might sound weird--I mean I don't even know you--so feel free to say no, but would you mind," He coughs, clearing his throat, "would you mind, maybe, pretending to be my girlfriend?"

You're face falls, eyes wide and lips opening and closing like a fish as you try to think of a way to respond. "Just for a little--a few weeks maybe. I just- I think this might be the longest I've gotten a moment of peace from you know who." You open your mouth again to reply and he interrupts again, "You know what, that was dumb, I'm sorry. Have a nice day." He turns to walk away and you grab his wrist before you lose the nerve.

"Okay," You say simply. "Okay?" "Okay. I'll do it." He looks as though he'll fall to his knees with gratitude as he thanks you repeatedly. You pull him to your locker, unlocking it quickly before you place your book inside and take out a piece of paper and a pen. You scribble something onto it quickly and hand it to him. "My phone number," you start, "I don't have my own line, so don't be alarmed if a grouchy old man picks up the phone; that's my dad." He takes it and nods, placing it in his letterman jacket's pocket. "We should probably talk about how this is gonna work, so call me. My dad usually blacks out by eight so the phone should be free then." You lean up to kiss his cheek, trying not to make it obvious how nervous you really are, how fast your heart's beating.

Before he can respond, you pick your book back up--being sure to get the textbook for Mr. Jones's class--and close your locker, rushing to class. You can feel his gaze on you as you walk away and the heat in your cheeks only grows.

When you finally make it through the door, the bell rings loudly. You collapse into your seat all the way in the back, next to your best friend. "Who got you all flustered like that?" He teases and you open your book--on a random page, thanks to Steve--in front of your face to hide. "Oh c'mon, hon," He says mockingly as he lowers your book to see your eyes. "Mister Munson, please stop pestering your peers," Mr. Jones says as he walks through the doors. The ever-dramatic math teacher loves to make an entrance. "Yeah, yeah, Jonesy," Eddie rolls his eyes animatedly, and Mr. Jones puts a tally mark under 'Eddie Antics', the count now at thirty-seven. "Keep this up, Mister Munson, and you'll catch up to last year's record." "One can only dream."

Mr. Jones starts the lesson of the day and Eddie turns to you, his voice hushed, "Who was it?" You shake your head, eyes trained on the board. "Oh come on." He says, his voice a bit too loud as Mr. Jones clears his throat. Eddie apologizes quietly, his eyes not leaving your embarrassed frame. "Was it a guy? A girl?" You huff. "Really? A girl?" His eyes widen, a Cheshire-like grin overtaking his face. You give him a bored look and his face falls, "So a guy?" When you fall further into your seat he rolls his eyes. "Who was it, then? What guy thinks he's worthy of my girl?" "Your girl?" You ask with a raised eyebrow. "Yes. You're mine; I've claimed you. I'm like a cat."

You sigh exasperatedly at his antics and Mr. Jones pauses mid-sentence to add a tally mark at the sound. "What?! Really, Jonesy?" Eddie asks, pouting like a toddler who just got told no. Mr. Jones responds by continuing his lesson from where he left off and Eddie groans, leaning back in his chair until it's balanced on two legs.

You laugh quietly and look at Eddie, who has now decided that puppy-dog eyes would get you to spill--he was right. "Fine," You huff, realizing he was probably gonna hear about the kiss eventually anyway, "It was Steve." His eyes widen like saucers and the chair leans back too far, making him fall to the ground with it. Mr. Jones sighs again, adding yet another tally mark to the board; There are now thirty-nine.

"Steve?!" Eddie whisper-shouts once he gets settled again. You ignore him, writing down the equations from the board and he groans again, "Fine, ignore me all you want. I'll get answers out of you sooner or later."

✥﹤┈┈┈┈┈﹥✥

You sigh as you pick up beer cans off the floor, keeping your steps light to not wake up the man currently passed out on the couch. You take the half-empty can from his hand and pour it out in the sink a few feet away. There really isn't enough space in these trailers. You watch the wasted money go down the drain and rub your tired eyes with your free hand. The only thing you want to do right now is lay down with a good book and read till the sun comes up, saying 'one more chapter' every time you finish one.

You don't have a chance to pick up your book as the phone's shrill ringing shakes the trailer. Your dad says something that sounds almost like a threat to the phone's life as you go to pick it up, extending the cord as far as it'll go so you can take the call in your room, the door shut. "Hello?" "Hey," the voice on the other side of the line says and you look at the clock next to your bed at the familiar sound. "Shit, I didn't realize it was already eight." "Is this a bad time? I can call back later, or you can call me when you're free?" You smile at his rambling. "No, no. We can talk now. I've just gotta keep it down so I don't wake up my dad. He's not fun to deal with when he's drunk, even less when you wake him up." "Yeah, I understand how that feels. Thankfully my parents are out of town." He mumbles something else you can't quite hear, but you aren't sure you're supposed to so you ignore it.

"Where do you live, I can drive you to school tomorrow." "No!" You wince at the loudness of your own voice, praying to whoever would listen that you didn't wake up your dad. It's not that you're ashamed of where you live, it's just that you don't want him making him feel like you're worth any less because you're not from some snooty rich area; you've heard about King Steve, what he's like. "Uhm, okay, I don't have to drive you. I just thought it'd make this ruse a bit more believable, y'know?"

"No, you're right, I'm sorry. I just... my dad might not be too pleased with a stranger pulling up to his house," You pause to think of the right words, "How about we meet at the library tomorrow morning?" "Sure thing, It'll give us time to practice our stories on the drive to school." "Stories?" You ask with a confused frown. "Yeah, like 'how we met', 'where our first date was', 'who fell first', that kinda stuff." "Are you expecting to get interrogated?" You hear him chuckle and you sigh, "We met at the fair, our first date was at the movies, and I fell first." There's silence on the other end like he's writing it down.

"Why didn't I fall first?" "You've seen me, right?" You joke, but you can hear his frown as he responds, "Yeah, and? You're gorgeous, I'd fall first any day." You feel a smile form on your face as you laugh out a response, "Thanks, but I think you can only fall first once." "My lack of grammar skills doesn't make what I said any less true." You're cheeks grow warm and you look down at your feet, "Thank you." "Of course. So, we met at the fair, our first date was--what if our first date was at the bookstore? You like books right?" "Oh, sure that works, I just thought you'd prefer the movies or something." "Cool, and then I fell first. Sound good?" "Yeah, sounds great." "Perfect, what time should we meet at the library?" You hum as you think, looking at the clock, then at your dad through the cracked door, "Does seven work? Or seven-thirty?" Based on the silence, you can tell he nodded to your question because a second later, he says, "Yeah, yup, seven works for me." "Great, well, goodnight. I'll see you tomorrow." "Oh, uh, okay. Yeah, goodnight." You frown at the sadness in his voice but before you can say anything the line cuts out.

You open your door to find your dad standing in front of the now-broken wall phone. You look down at the mess on the floor with a blank stare, drop the phone in your hand on top of the mess, and turn away to your room. "I'll pick up a new one tomorrow after school." You say as though it's second nature--it might as well be. He drunkenly mumbles something about not talking back before he collapses onto the couch. You close your door and open the window, picking up your book from your nightstand before you make your escape and hurry to Eddie's trailer next door. He opens the door before you can knock and you sit on the couch, opening your book to the page you left off at.

"So," Eddie starts, "Steve, huh?" You hum, nodding. "How'd that happen?" "We met at the fair." You hear Eddie shut the door, turning all three locks before he sits down beside you. "Where'd you go for your first date?" You huff out a laugh. You'd have to tell Steve he was right about the interrogation. "He took me to the bookstore. Now enough with the questions, please." He rolls his eyes, laying his head in your lap, prompting you to play with his hair, "Fine. I just wanna make sure you're happy. I mean, you know how douchey he was last year." "He's actually really sweet now," You say truthfully. Eddie hums, "Okay, I'll believe you." His eyes drift closed as you run your fingers through his hair, closing your book and falling asleep with your head back against the couch cushions.

✥﹤┈┈┈┈┈﹥✥

You startle awake as Wayne walks through the trailer door, his boots are clunky and loud. "Sorry, peach, didn't mean to wake ya," He says and you shake your head, "It's all right, Wayne, I should be getting home anyway." "You sure?" You nod as you lay Eddie's head gently on the couch, "I gotta wake up kinda early tomorrow, but I'll be by to make dinner before you head to work? I was thinking lasagna?" "Sounds great, kiddo. Hey, how's Ed doin' in school?" You shrug, looking at the curly-haired slobbering mess that is your best friend, "Pretty much the same, but he has been getting better at getting to class on time, and I know for a fact he has at least one C+." Wayne lets out a sigh of relief. "That's good t'hear. I'd hate to see him miss out on life 'cause of the school system."

You open the door to leave when Wayne stops you, handing you your book before kissing the top of your head and shoving you out the door. You laugh quietly so as to not wake up the neighbors and head towards your open window.

Once inside, you close the window gently and lock it, closing your dingy blinds before crawling into bed and switching the light on your nightstand off. You close your eyes and take a few deep breaths, your lungs accustomed to the stench of alcohol and cigarettes. You start to drift off, sleep falling over you like a big dark blanket, relieving you of your duties in the real world and allowing you the comfort of your imagination.

✥﹤┈┈┈┈┈﹥✥

The sound of your alarm makes you jolt awake, even as it's set to the lowest volume. You crack your neck and your knuckles before rolling out of the mess of blankets--a blanket cocoon if you will. You take a two-minute shower to avoid getting yelled at for using the hot water and wrap a towel around your body. You quickly put your hair up and brush your teeth, nearly forgetting to put on some mascara before exiting the bathroom and rushing into your room. Clothes are scattered all around and it takes you a good five minutes to find something clean to wear, even with the minuscule amount of clothes you own.

You toss on the clothes quickly, making a mental note to do laundry later, and you take your keys off the hook and run out the door. You grab your bike, leaning against the rickety railing of the stairs leading up to the trailer, and take off. Your keys jingle around in your pocket, nearly distracting you from the oncoming car.

You make it to the library with minutes to spare and you lock up your bike using the chain sitting in the front basket. You turn just in time to see Steve pulling up and you smile at the happy wave he sends your way. You wave back despite your exhaustion and greet him as he gets out of the car.

He rushes around to the passenger side, holding the door open for you with a dorky grin and you roll your eyes, "You could've just waited in the car for me." "Now what kind of fake boyfriend would I be if I didn't hold the door open for my fake girlfriend?" "You're a dork," You reply with a straight face and you swear you see a hint of pink dusting his cheeks and ears.

You get settled in the car as he comes back around the driver seat and starts the car. He makes sure your seatbelt is buckled before he puts the car in reverse and backs out of the parking spot. He pulls onto the road and turns on the radio, turning it down as he looks over at you, "How'd you sleep?" You shrug and he frowns, "Are you okay?" You stay silent for a moment, deciding if you want to tell the truth, and you nod, a smile plastered on your face. He nods at your answer and turns back to look at the road, keeping the radio turned down in case you want to talk.

"Hey," you finally speak up and he perks up, "Could you drive me to the general store after school? I need to pick something up." "Yeah, sure." You reach over to turn up the music as your favorite song plays through the speakers. You try your very hardest to not sing along and opt instead for humming along as you sway to the rhythm. Steve smiles at you and begins belting out the lyrics, forcing a laugh to leave your lips. You watch as he messes up the words, still singing his heart out with a wide smile, and you decide to join in. The car stops and suddenly you realize you're at the school. Your face heats at the people looking at you through the window.

Steve turns off the car, and with it, the music. He rushes out of the car, running to the other side, not caring how stupid he looks, before he's at your door, holding it open for you with a hand out for you to take. He pulls you to his chest and whispers in your ear, "Can I kiss you?" You nod subtly and he pulls back slightly to press his lips against yours. Your arms wrap around his neck as his hands hold your hips. You can feel the eyes of your peers, but kissing Steve almost makes that all go away.

Almost.

You first hear whispers, then giggles, then, as you pull away, opening your eyes, you can see all the people standing and gossiping and pointing and you freeze. Your heart plummets as you think of the possibilities. Was this just a joke? Was Steve in on this? You look up at the boy's face to find him scowling. Only, it's not at you. He flips off the crowd as he pulls you closer to him protectively, grabbing your backpack and your hand, and walking into the school with you in tow.

"I'm sorry," He says once you lose sight of them, "People are assholes." He lets go of your hand and your heart flutters as you realize you wish he didn't. You take the bag from his hand as he backs up slightly. "I've gotta get to class, but I'll come by yours once the bell rings, which class do you have?" You clear your throat before answering, now realizing you were just staring a his lips as he talked, "Uhm, Mrs. O'Donell, room forty-eight." He nods, looking up as though he's repeating it in his head a few times before he looks back down at you and nods. "I'll see you later, then," He says, his eyes catching on something behind you before he pulls you in for a kiss, just a peck, but still just as mindblowing as the others. You reach your hand up to feel your lips as you watch him walk away, and you know you're hooked.

✥﹤┈┈┈┈┈﹥✥

i was gonna write more but i wasnt in the mood so this is all you get. lmk if you want a part two eventually

[pompadorbz]

good morning pompadorbz nation as it turns out i am still sick and twisted

No, the Ender Prince AU has NOT left my brain, don't you think for a second that it hasn't, it is to the point that I am drawing this guy for one of my final assignments, ive already gotten an art trade of him its honetly a miracle i haven't put him on artfight yet. AND. And. I spent my entire evening on one singular short fic. Here is that fic. (note that. i very much made this for myself but i think ive pretty much talked about all the plot points so far in my that appear here in my older posts about this au, which you can find under the #ender prince au tag. if there's something that appears here that I've omitted from the posts then like. idk that's an issue not an issme lol. I'll probably post about whatever i didn't in like 2-3 business days knowing the state of my brainwaves rn. also shoutout to @fries-is-silly for beta reading this for me whilst i slept comfy and cozy in my bed)

The claws of Phil’s exoskeleton lightly click against the cold purpur floors as he briskly makes his way across the long hallways of the end palace. The Ender King had requested the night prior that he visit the throne upon awakening, and Phil knew he was an impatient man. Phil knew better than to keep him waiting this long by now… He never failed to disappoint in that regard, it seemed. Phil truly could not move any quicker if he tried. The lavender tiles were so large that he would barely miss the edge of each square with every step, and he swore up and down to himself that walking back and forth across a single hallway would take him a complete twenty minutes, but this was assuming time was valuable enough in the end to fact-check that estimate to begin with. Perhaps he had only gotten used to it at this point, but Phil always felt as if the hallways had shrunk since his first days in the palace– not that the King had really allowed him to roam very far for that first while, anyway. He remembered the dread he felt as he was first carried off into the throne room; How staring up the unfathomably tall walls and to the impossibly high ceiling made him feel horribly nauseous. He thought that no closed space should ever be this colossal. It gave him a rare fear– a terror of heights. For once. But that was back then. This is Now. And right now, Phil was on solid ground, and he was nearly at the throne room. He thought that maybe- as he picks up the pace, if he could get away with a quick sprint, he would get there a little bit quicker. However, A familiar voice called from around the next corner, dripping with acid. It makes Phil freeze dead in his tracks. “You took your precious time getting here as is, little fly. It would be a waste of energy for you to scratch up my floor with your little claws.”Phil’s pace slows significantly at the comment as he turns into the throne’s open doorway, clasping his hands together in shame as he stares up towards the throne where the Ender king sat, shrouded in his usual cloak as his hair fell like waterfalls off the edges and arms of the seat. The golden mask that rested upon his face was one that Phil didn’t recall ever seeing him wear; a spider, with its giant mandibles protruding outward from the lower half, and eight eyes, painstakingly painted a bright red. Phil thought it looked rather striking.

“I… I’m sorry for rushing, my lord. I knew when I woke up that I would be cutting it close… It won’t happen again.” The ender king hums low and sarcastically. “You say it won’t happen again… And yet, every time, you always seem to break that promise without fail now, don’t you? Hm?”There was a faux-sweetness in the monarch’s voice that made Phil’s throat tighten, and before he could work up the courage to provide another pitiful excuse, the Ender King was already continuing. “Though, I suppose that it is to be expected by now, isn’t it?” He asks rhetorically. “But no need to fret it much, little prince. There are far, far more pressing matters we must discuss today.”Ah.Phil knew well what that probably meant. “Is… Is it nearly time..? And so soon?” He questioned, feeling a pit form in his stomach from the nerves alone. “Ohh, we are not quite ready just yet, foolish prince! There are still a mere few preparations to be made.” The king explains matter of factly. “I will tell you exactly when it is time.”So in other words, Phil had to prepare to receive this information at the very last minute. Cool. “For now, however… I can prepare you for your little adventure just a cinch more.”He slowly holds his hands out in front of him. “Come forward.”

Phil nods in silence and flutters his elytra, slowly lifting off of the ground and flying up into the king’s hands as he’d done dozens of times before. It was a practiced movement by now. The Ender king wordlessly carries Phil over to the arm of his throne, letting him carefully walk off and take a seat on the end stone as he’d done countless times before. Sometimes, if he was lucky, the king would allow him to wrap whatever draped from his cloak around him as he sat by his side. …That did not occur often, however. And most certainly not today after having arrived so late.

Phil instead watches the Ender King as he reaches a bony hand into his cloak and pulls out a tiny (by his standards, anyway), white-painted chest. He carries it between his fingers, placing it directly in front of Phil with just enough force to threaten to crush him; if he ever fell out of line, that is.

“A gift! Just for you, little orchid.~”Phil stares at the box for just a moment and reaches toward it… Only to look back at the Ender king for a moment in his hesitation.

The last time he had been given a gift, it was… Well, it was his very own room in the palace, complete with a rather comfortable bed, some soft wool carpet… Even a few trinkets that the king didn’t wish to keep for himself in the throne room. It wasn’t terribly big, nor was it filled with riches… But it made the castle feel a little more like a home.

It wasn’t a perfect home, but of course… Phil hadn’t a reason to complain that’d be worth the Ender King’s time.

“Oh, don’t just gawk at me like that, Corvus. Don’t you wish to know what’s inside? Are you not curious?” Says the king. “You could at the very least pretend to be grateful.”“I am grateful, my king! I really, truly am! It… just took me by surprise, is all-”

“Yes, well I believe that is in fact the point of a surprise, isn’t it?” The Ender King impatiently cuts him off, tapping his finger nails on the opposing arm of the throne.

Phil stares into the vacant red eyes of the spider mask for a brief moment, but only sighs, accepting the swift dismantling of yet another poor excuse.

“Yeah, I guess it is, huh…” He concedes, turning back to the chest and gently placing his hands onto the lid.

He lifts it open and peers inside at what looked like… A wool blanket..? No… No, rather it was something wrapped inside a wool blanket. It glistens in gold through the holes in between each fuzzy woven thread as Phil carefully takes it out of the box and cradles it in his lap.

More of the object’s golden surface is revealed with each layer of wool that Phil unfolds, and after there is nothing left to cover it, there sits in front of him:

“A mask..? Like.. Like one of yours?” Phil tentatively asks.

The Ender King laughs with a disposition so sunny it was almost unnerving.

“That it is, clever prince! I made it especially for you to take along on your journey.~”Phil looks back down at the mask in slight awe, inspecting it further. It looked almost like a mantis’ face of some kind, with two large eyes protruding outward from the top, sitting just above where the real eyeholes sat… But more curiously, something was nestled in between the eyes…

“What’s this ender pearl for..?” Phil asks.

“Ah, now that, curious little prince, is because this mask serves a very important purpose.”

The king’s tone was the most fluttery and excitable it had ever been, letting the answer to Phil’s question dangle like a carrot on a string for a moment.

“This will be your ticket in and out of the universe I’ve picked for your first little expedition,” He begins. “and every universe beyond that for the rest of our forever time.” Oh.

This was more than just a mask… It was a priceless artifact; one more valuable than Phil could ever imagine being.

He couldn’t even think of something to say about it… This whole mission had a lot of responsibility to it already, but… This was different.

It was tangible.

It made any and all words elude him.

“Now, What do we say, Corvus…?”Though… He supposed he could start with that one, yeah.

“Thank you…” He nearly whispers, trailing a hand against the mask’s surface before he wraps it up in the blanket once more and places it carefully back into the white box.

The Ender King places a hand to his chin.

“Oh, Corvus… I didn’t quite catch that– What, with your incessant mumbling. Oh do repeat yourself, would you?~” Phil nervously clears his throat as he looks back up to the spider mask, looking into the eyeholes as if he could see the deity’s face underneath.

“Thank you so very much… My king.”

“Good boy.”The Ender King holds a hand out for Phil to once again climb upon, and Phil obliges; this time allowing himself to be brought down to ground level. The last thing he wanted was to drop his present.

“Run along now, little prince! There will be plenty of work to be done in due time, so do not disappoint me.”Phil nods and begins making his way toward the door… But he’s stopped by the monarch one final time just as he goes to turn through the exit.

“Oh… And one final thing before you leave, yes? It is incredibly important… So listen closely.” The Ender King begins.

Phil only barely turns around before the feeling of dread hits him like a brick. There was always a catch to these… Nicer interactions.

“Be careful with that mask. Don’t you lose it, and don’t you dare break it. Because if you do…”

Phil swallows the lump in his throat. He knew the threat he was about to hear. As empty as it seemed after constant reiteration… It never failed to strike fear into his heart.

“I have absolutely no qualms with plucking those little wings off of your ungrateful back.”

The silence hangs heavy between the two… And what was likely only a few seconds felt like minutes to Phil.

“Do I make myself clear, Icarus?”Phil Nodded.

“Crystal.”

[shou-jpeg]

TRICK OR TREAT! 🧞

Treat!

****

A hot mug of tea steeped with fresh ginger, a spoonful of honey, the juice of an entire lemon and a healthy dose of love and affection.

If this doesn't heal Kim's cold and soothe his sore throat, then nothing will. Chay is convinced of that.

Once the tea has cooled down enough for Kim to drink without burning himself, Chay makes his way with it into their bedroom where he finds his boyfriend bundled up under a swathe of blankets and pillows, looking miserable.

Kim is many wonderful things, but a good patient is not one of them. Chay once read something on the internet about "man flu" and nothing has resonated so much with how he feels about his boyfriend in this moment.

Chay sits down on the side of the bed, cooing as he moves the blankets aside to reveal Kim's sweaty, sulky face. "Darling I brought you tea. Sit up so you can drink it. It'll help with your throat."

Kim sniffles, coughs once and groans loudly as he moves to sit against the headboard. Chay resists the urge to roll his eyes at the dramatics.

In all fairness to Kim though, getting sick has ruined the Halloween plans they'd been organising and preparing for for the past two months. Chay has been getting really into sewing this year and he'd made both their costumes from scratch. It was a shame they weren't going to be able to wear them to the party this evening.

Luckily for WiK's official pages, last week they'd done a little photoshoot in the corner of the apartment set up for livestreams. Kim was too sick to want to even look at his phone, so Chay had scheduled them for posting on his behalf. They'd be going up in a couple of hours.

Kim looks at him pathetically as he sips his tea, puppy dog eyes at full force. Chay smiles at him fondly, moving to grab the damp towel from the bedside so he can dab at the sweat on Kim's face.

"You shouldn't get too close," Kim says lowly, voice horse.

"It's okay, I never get sick." Chay's smile widens "and I don't think you're in much of a state to care for yourself right now, Phi."

Kim gives him his most pathetic look and Chay laughs lightly. "We didn't get to wear your costumes…" Kim looks so mourneful that Chay can't help but lean over to kiss his forehead. His temperature actually seems like it might be going down, Chay notes before he pulls back fully. Thank God.

"We can wear them again next year, Phi. It'll be good actually, because I'll get a chance to do that embroidery on the shoulders of your jacket that I ran out of time for."

Kim sighs, pouting as he hands Chay back the empty mug. He slides himself down awkwardly and rearranges himself until he's once again fully submerged in blankets, only his face peaking out.

He gives Chay another cute, pathetic look."Lie down with me?"

Smiling fondly, Chay moves to the other side of the bed, taking the towel with him. He lies on top of the covers and reaches over to brush Kim's fringe back gently, tracing his fingers down the sides of his face. "Go to sleep, Phi, I'll take care of you."

Kim grumbles out something unintelligible, shuffles closer to Chay's side and closes his eyes.

He looks a bit like a sleeping cat, Chay thinks fondly. Maybe he'll alter Kim's costume for next year, make it more feline. He'd look cute with two little ears.

[itsahotminuteinbetween]

Aaaand at last the long awaited chapter 7 that I've been hoarding from yall for a lil while! There's just a little buildup here, so not terribly essential, but I think it was important to write anyway. This sets up the next chapter, so be aware of that...

And as always, I must invite my esteemed guests @itsberrydreemurstuff, @bibooby, @laegume and @andyssilly to the lil slumber party. (If anyone else wants to be tagged just lemme know and I'll put ya in the next one!)

Anyways, on with the show!

Word Count: 3075

The tension from this morning melts away pretty quickly once the kids show up. You’re dragged into a tea party, sipping air from a plastic cup with your knees tucked into your chest to fit you while you gossip to the children about Mr. Teddy Bear’s newest escapade in an overly-posh accent.

That feeling from earlier creeps up on you again, the phantom constrictions in your chest tightening, and you hardly have time to mask your sharp inhale and wince when a hard shock runs up your spine, warning you of what’s to come. The kids seem worried for a moment, but you cover up your reaction with a dramatic tale, urging them to ‘banish’ you to your station to save them from the wretched demon possessing your immune system. It’s not really that type of illness, not the sort they can catch, but you’ve always had a bit of a flair for the dramatic, and your performance does the trick.

You regret not bringing your medicine today, but Sun had warned you not to, and he was effectively the boss. It wasn’t so bad anyway- just a bit of soreness, nothing terribly noteworthy. Worst case scenario, you could take a pill from the Daycare’s little pharmacy cabinet and make it through the day. And maybe call your brother as a last resort, but you refused to bother him unless it was an emergency. For now, you’ll just wait it out. 

Snacktime is announced, and you wheel out the food, standing to the side as your stomach decides to make its hunger known. Did you have breakfast before you left? You don’t know. You didn’t think to pack a lunch (you never do) and your clock-out time wasn’t soon enough for you to placate your hunger. You stare at the contents on the table and remind yourself that it’s not for you, it’s for the kids, and Sun is right there. You return to your work station and attempt to read your book, but the words can’t seem to stay in your head.

By the time the lights go out, the pounding has sharpened, and you’re hardly able to move your legs without some ache in your bones. It’d probably be best if you left the daycare to check yourself over, which you neglect to tell Moon before he even gets his chance to do his little routine. His faceplate tilts to the side with a little click, and you’re out the door before he thinks to say anything. 

—---------------------------------

Moon blinked. That’s…new. They never take a break during naptime. 

The only reply he got from his brother was a subdued hum of agreement. 

—------------------------------

Your slightly unbalanced speed-walking comes to a halt a good 20 paces from the Daycare as you realize you have no idea where you’re going. You’ve never really been through the Pizzaplex aside from heading to your post or to Parts & Service, so you only knew two or three routes in this maze. Well, and the DJ’s arcade, but you only know the directions there from the entrance, not the Daycare. 

Maybe you could find your way from Parts & Service? Last time you’d been, the STAFF bots led the way…

Scratch that. You knew one route.

Lovely. You can’t say that you’re particularly thrilled to do more walking in your state, but you suppose there’s no time like the present to get further adjusted to your workplace. There was a restaurant around here somewhere, right? Even if their only dish was pizza that tasted like cardboard topped with soggy oatmeal, food was food, and it was better than nothing. If you could only figure out how to get there.

The irony of the fact that you have to go find the Map bot and ask it for directions is not lost on you. 

Oh, how the tables have turned.

Luckily, you don’t have to look far. It just so happens that one is conveniently stationed around a corner at some random attraction. You approach it awkwardly and tap it on the shoulder, offering a small, unsure smile. “Hey, I was wondering if you, uh…if you could spare me a map?”

You swear the stoic face of the bot in front of you practically lights up, and you can feel the beaming smile it gives you in spite of its static expression as it shoves a map into your hand with the vigorous and insistent mantra of “Take a map! Please take a map!”

You struggle to suppress the little laugh that bubbles out of you upon seeing its excitement, and you comply with its wishes, shooting it a much more relaxed smile and thanking it before it wheels away to the next set of customers. 

You examine the map eagerly thrust upon you. Apparently there are several dining areas, one for every floor. You don’t have much time to explore, though, so you choose the closest one to you: the FazPad.

After twenty minutes of running around in search of the elusive location, you’re finally able to find and order something from the somewhat overpriced menu with the help of the employee discount. Ordering a Moondrop curry seems fitting considering your position, though you pray Moon doesn’t somehow find out about it. You poke at the bright blue dish that you’re pretty sure is supposed to be edible. It isn’t half as bad as you expected, surprisingly. Shame you couldn’t say the same for its namesake.

Speaking of the lunar menace, you have maybe half an hour before naptime is over, and you refuse to be late. You’d seen them when you were tardy, and it was not pretty. Your mini check up would go pretty quickly, as you were confident it wasn’t anything problematic. 

Another ten minutes is spent trying to find a bathroom (you do not want to go back to use the one in the Daycare while Moon’s still out unless absolutely necessary). You lock yourself in a small stall and lean against the door to look yourself over, fingers gently pressing into your legs and lower back with hesitance. You cringe slightly, lips thinning into a line. You hate when this happens, but it should pass eventually. With any luck, you’d be able to go to work and avoid the worst of it. You’d just have to be a little more mindful of your limits.

This probably wouldn’t end up like last time.

Satisfied with your conclusion, you make your way back to the Daycare. Naptime was still in session and you were anticipating a trick upon your return.

—----------------------

You wake up in a cold sweat, heart racing as you gasp for air, shooting up from the mattress and breathing heavily, your eyes dart around your room, relaxing when you spot the familiar dark silhouettes of your belongings. There’s just enough moonlight from the window for you to make out details. Your hand flies to your chest almost instinctively, as if to verify that your heart’s still pumping, you’re still alive, still here. 

You’re awake now.

Once your initial panic dies down, you become acutely aware of three things. 

The first is that it is very hot, almost unbearably so. Sweat clings to your form as perspiration runs down your forehead. You can hear the AC vents pushing out air, but it doesn’t help cool the burning in your core that spreads through you.

The second thing you notice is that the shirt your hand is clutching tightly is your work uniform. You must’ve blacked out after coming home from work. As usual, you don’t remember that.

The third thing is the feeling of bile rising in your throat, and it swiftly surpasses the first two observations. You stagger to the kitchen sink on numb legs and lean heavily against the kitchen counter, retching violently. You’re still shaking by the time you can manage to lift your head out, forcing yourself to hack and spit the rest out to flush out the remaining fluids choking your throat. You hazard a glance at the sink before washing away the blue chunks. Figures. You’re never having Fazbear’s trademarked trash again.

You navigate back to your room to brush your teeth and rid the foul taste of vomit from your mouth, cranking up the AC on the way to bed. You toss the thin cover aside and adorn your pajamas, waiting for sleep to claim you and take you from this awful feeling. Something nags you in the back of your mind, warning you that it’s only about to get worse before you’re dragged under, in and out of consciousness as the night progresses.

Your alarm blares some time later and you fumble to turn it off. Little shit doesn’t know you’ve been up for the past hour. You bite back a groan. While your stomach had thankfully settled overnight, everything else has hit you full force. 

It’s official. You’re Sick.

Or at least, that’s what the shit feeling leads you to believe.

You make a weak attempt to sit up…only to immediately crash back down again. An involuntary cry of alarm rips from you at that sharp pain that lances through your spine. It’s so much worse than yesterday. You shake your head and force back tears. It usually doesn’t get this bad. It usually just stops at your lower back. 

Still, you have a job to do, and you’re not letting a little thing like this stop you.

Your things are shoved into your bag, work clothes thrown on. You hesitate but decide to bring the pills anyway. Maybe it’s the lack of sleep talking, but Sun yelling at you is nothing compared to this.

You’re out of the apartment before you even remember you forgot to pack a lunch yet again. 

—---------------------------

The attendants can't help but notice that something seems…off…about you.

On the surface level, nothing has changed. You still walk into the room and greet them, still write your reports and go along with Sun’s demands and Moon’s antics. But there are little things that tip them off, like the small limp in your step or the naps you’ve begun taking more often when the lights go out. 

Moon notices your bag has lost some weight. The usual thought and care packed into it is absent. Extra clothes and books are left behind, with only your phone and laptop inside. You’d also taken to bringing those pills. He’d given up on lecturing you about it when all he got was an affirmative that was immediately broken the next day. The lunar AI assured him they were harmless, but it was still off-putting.

Your emails, they noticed, had also become more succinct and to the point. Not that it was a bad thing: you tended to ramble in great detail, even in the simple notes. Lately, though, they found that it was missing something. 

Take your recent Maintenance update, for example. You’d apparently noticed the issues with their joints and filed a request for Parts & Service. You always notified them a day or two in advance prior to an appointment. This time, however, they did not receive your normally well-written email. It remained polite, of course, but it was clipped, curt.

Unexpected.

And it wasn’t just your work suffering, either. Your usual excitement when playing with the children was absent. You were tenser, got tired more easily, frequently taking breaks and hanging back to catch your breath.

No, the change wasn’t too great, but it was there, and it was starting to get a bit out of hand. You’d pretty much been glued to your desk for the last two days. And while you weren’t really required to do much else besides your updates, it still felt…wrong.

It didn’t matter, though, they reasoned. If you weren’t feeling good, you’d take a couple days off and they’d be done with it. They’d have enough leverage in addition to your recent slacking to get rid of you.

They…did still want to get rid of you, Sun reminded himself. You had flaws, flaws that could not exist in their perfect system, flaws that had to be eradicated to maintain order.

It was better for everyone that way.

______________________________________

You rub your eyes, slowly scanning your ID at the clock-in station and fighting back the dark edges in the corner of your vision. You hadn’t been sleeping well as of late, and it was starting to take a toll on you. You didn’t dare to call in sick, however, remembering all too well your coworkers’ reactions when you’d returned from you unexpected time off.

Granted, that was a special case, but they didn’t know that.

It’s not like you knew what had been going on at the time, anyway.

You stroll into the Daycare as usual, bag slung on your shoulder and a slightly less enthusiastic greeting on your lips. Your routine is interrupted when without warning, a dizziness crashes into you and leaves you with spots in your vision. They do not clear this time when you try to force them away. The room spins, and your knees buckle under you, causing you to lurch forward. You brace yourself against the wall and hiss at the sudden burning ache of your muscles. 

As quickly as it came, the feeling withdraws, pulling back fast enough that the dizziness multiplies instead of lessening. Once the room soon stills, you pull yourself back to your feet, sitting down at your desk and getting to work like nothing happened.

Just as well that no one saw.

You’re in the midst of writing another report when your phone goes off. You take a glance around to make sure that Sun isn’t watching and open them. There are three messages waiting for you. One from your brother asking how you’ve been, one mysterious letter from Fazbear, and one from…

Ah.

You skim the last one and dismiss it. The first two are received with greater excitement, something you haven’t felt in a little while. You respond to your brother with your trademarked ‘I’m doing just great let’s talk about something else now’ and read Management’s reply.

Hello, Fazbear Employee, 

We have received your request for funding for greater literary material. After careful consideration, we have decided to approve your proposal. You are required to send a list of materials you wish to purchase. Please remember that any liabilities and/or repercussions faced as a result of this project will result in immediate termination of your contract.

Thank you and have a Faz-errific day!'

Your exhaustion and illness is momentarily forgotten as you squeal and bounce in your seat excitedly. Oh, you already had a dozen titles running through your head that you were certain the kids would love. You’d already compiled a short list a few pages long in your notebook, you’d have to copy it and send it over as soon as possible-

Aaaaand there was that ever so familiar voice piping up in front of you and instantly dashing all your hopes and dreams. “Oh? What’s got you oh-so chipper this morning?”

You swallow down that instinctual feeling of being doused in ice water and manage to maintain your smile. “Management approved my request for buying more books!”

“I’d been under the impression you’d been doing so already..” he remarked dryly.

You ignore his comment, showing him the email and forgetting who you’re ranting to your boss in your excitement about this new opportunity. He takes the device and reads the email himself before responding in an odd voice. “Management didn’t send us an update about this…”

“I just found out myself,” you shrug, not noticing the subtle glare shot at you. “I already had a few titles in mind, but I’d be more than happy to get your opinions on them. The kids are gonna be so excited to get some new stories for naptime, and I’m sure we could-“

“There’s nothing wrong with what we have now for naptime,” he cuts you off, a second, darker undertone layering his voice briefly. His eyes flash red for a split second. 

You blink and hastily amend yourself. “Right, sorry, I just meant that it’ll be nice to have some more variety, that’s all. We could probably find some stuff for you guys, too, if you wanted. I’m sure Moon’s gotten tired of children’s books by now.”

The attendant says nothing for a while, remaining eerily still, and you turn around to see if he’s still there. There have  been some times where they’ve slipped away without you noticing. How they did so was unknown to you considering the many bells hanging from their frame. “Sun?”

The lights cut off abruptly, and the raspier voice returns, drawling sardonically with a hint of mockery. “Awww, you would do that for meee?” He clasps his hands together and flutters his ‘eyelids’ in a show of sarcasm.

“Hi Moon,” you greet him without missing a beat, shutting your laptop and rummaging through your bag for that notebook of yours. You normally brought it, but maybe you’d forgotten it again. You seemed to be doing that a lot lately…

A blue arm shoots out and grabs yours, promoting you to look up at your assailant’s glowering gaze.

“We don’t need your handouts, certainly not from the likes of you,” he hisses, squeezing your wrist tighter for emphasis. 

You manage a nod, swallowing the lump in your throat and lightly tugging at your arm to signal your desire for release. “R-right, of course, sorry, I just thought-“

“We aren’t interested in the thoughts of a mere worker.” His grip does not yield, the silicone masked metal hand like a shackle. You briefly recall Monty’s harsh bruises (time) before. You don’t want another limb to stop functioning right now. That would really suck.

He leans in to speak, privately relishing in the way you try to lean back with an inkling of fear. He grins sharply. “Y-“

A knock at the door startles the two door of you, earning a growl from Moon and a shuddery exhale of relief from you.

He sends you one last loathsome look before the lights flicker on and Sun attends to the new arrival. You release another sigh, rubbing your now sore wrist. Another ache added to the list.

And with that, a new day has officially begun.

As optimistic as you’d like to be, you’re pretty sure you know exactly where it’s going from here.

———————

Aaaaaaaand that’s a wrap! Sorry for the long wait everyone, hope it was worthwhile and I’ll see you all in the next one!

[shyminmin]

༄𝐁𝐓𝐒 𝐗 𝐟.𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 | Fantasy, Mermaid AU | ༄𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 : 4.4k + ༄𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 : Dark/Traumatic situations, injuries, gore

It was later that day that things started to escalate and take an arduous turn.

I had woken up from a spontaneous afternoon nap to find that my throat had become ridiculously dry to the point where it was unbearable, like a sharp blade was cutting along its insides. In combination with this, the rest of my body felt like a total dead weight, my limbs being utterly devoid of energy. With this I had absolutely zero motivation to move one lousy inch off my bed, even if it wasn't the comfiest.

Still I was desperate so I had quickly – or should I say, as fast as my body could handle – ducked into my tiny bathroom that was attached to one side of the room, and turned on the tap at the sink. I cupped my hands to gather the flowing water and brought it to my mouth where I eagerly drank it up. I did this a couple of times before my thirst was satisfied and turned the water off only to look up and stare at my reflection in the mirror above.

Dark circles hung below my eyes and stood out against my skin that had noticeably lost some of its colour. Drops of sweat fell from points on my forehead as I went to wipe them away. The surface of my hands felt rough when I did this, I looked down to see that the skin was severely dried out and cracked in places. Shocked, I scanned the rest of my exposed skin to see that most areas were of similar condition, however not as bad as my hands.

"What the hell?"

I instantly coughed as my words came out short and raspy, like sawdust was scratching directly along my voice box.

Too bad I didn't have any moisturiser so I was left to bear with this horrible situation. Is the rest of my body gonna turn out like my feet, because if so I don't think I'll ever leave the confines of my apartment again.

Maybe they have a convenience store somewhere? They're bound to have skin products or sunscreen at least. Just anything to help with the state of my skin.

So with that in mind, I was off in search of a place that may or may not even be here. My breaths were short and laboured as fatigue dominated my form, body trying its best to stay upright as I stumbled rather than walked. Am I dying? God I feel horrible.

I groaned thinking about how I hadn't even begun packing my luggage, since I needed to leave after tomorrow in the early hours of the morning. My constant thoughts about what I am and my place in the world have caused me to hesitate in that task. It was like some invisible force was imploring me to stay here. Here where the constant smell of salt and waves continuously greeted me amongst the steady ocean breeze.

Ms Jee's gaze lingered on me as I stepped out and into the outside world, my mind sworn to have seen a slither of sympathy and concern appear on her caked up face. Guess I had earned some respect from her after all.

The rays of the early twilight sun felt like fire on my dry, shriveled skin as I scoured the deserted town, looking for the desired place that may or may not provide my skin with moisture. Would one even be open at this time? It's getting late.. Oh well you're out here now, might as well see things through.

I had trudged my way down the street for a good few minutes having no luck with my search before I was left halting in my tracks. I clutched my head as a sudden flash of ocean waves invaded my vision. They crashed along a bunch of neighbouring rocks, the salty water dispersing from the impact like mini fireworks. "Home..." the voice of my 'brother' sounded in my head, making me jump.

I blinked and just like that, the image of the moving waters disappeared, the sight of the town I was in appearing once again. Breath hitched, I glanced around cautiously, like I would find something; however only the old buildings of the seaside town met my gaze.

Was that the pull my 'brother' was talking about? The water's guidance?

Arms and legs starting to shake, I managed to take about three more tired steps along the gravelly road before my legs completely gave way. My hands instinctively flew out to break my fall as they collided with the road's uneven surface. I felt the skin on my palms scrape off as harsh stinging took their place.

"Ahh!" Gritting my teeth, I stiffened at the sharp spurt of pain, my body now kneeling along the ground as I managed to avoid hitting my head at least.

Hesitating to see the damage, I reluctantly turned my hands over so that the palms were facing upwards.

Please let there not be too much blood.

Lungs shrinking in my chest as my heart literally stopped beating, eyes no doubt ginormous at what I was seeing right now.

This can't be right. I must be hallucinating. No, I think I have full blown schizophrenia!

Why on earth?

Why in the name of science and everything logical...

Was my blood.

Purple?

Not just any purple, but more like a deep shade of rich violet. It glimmered in the faint sunlight as I just stared at it in denial, blinking my eyes several times in hope that if I opened them again that there would be the normal red seeping out of those deep gashes, however it remained indifferent.

I wasn't even focused anymore on the pain from the fall, as this unexpected sight hogged all of my attention.

Another flash caught me off guard and blinded me, making my head ache. An image of a shoreline appeared, the waters looking calm and inviting as they lulled me towards them with their constant forward and backward motions. "Let the waters guide you... Don't resist." He uttered.

I think...I think I need to get to the beach....

To the water..

A painful coughing fit brought me out of this second vision, my throat burning from the abrupt dryness again. My injured hands cupped my mouth to contain this violent onslaught as I felt a bunch of phlegm get hacked up. Urgh yuck. Except when I looked down upon them again, it never ended up being phlegm to begin with. Instead, I was once again startled by the sight of more of the same violet goop.

I was coughing up blood.

Nerves ruptured through me as I tried to take slow steady breaths.

I really need to get to the water...

"Don't resist these signs...doing so will only lead to your downfall..." I remembered the statement my sibling made.

Signs...

The constant thirst for water...

My dry, cracked skin...

Seafood suddenly being the most appetising thing...

These more vivid dreams and visions about the ocean..

And now abnormal blood..

"Trust the waters.."

It finally dawned on me.

My body is suffering because I'm on land. If I don't get into the water....

I'm going to die!

I was starting to wholeheartedly believe my previous assumptions, everything I've been exposed to outweighing all logic.

I'm no human.

I don't belong on land.

The sea is my home...

I tried to get up but my limbs refused to work, they were completely and hopelessly dead. Both sides of my neck throbbed and hurt like the skin was literally splitting open, my feet soon feeling the same way. With no other choice, I tried to desperately crawl my way in the direction of the sea.

"Come home! Let the waters change you."

"Brother...." I croaked in reply to his voice in my head.

Failing to move, my face lay against the rough, hot ground as my sight ever so slightly dimmed, a defeated tear escaping out of one of my eyes.

Was this it? I don't think I'm going to make it.

Gasping for air, I realised that I wouldn't see the outcome of my revelations, that I wouldn't get to see what my true home looked like or how life was like under the waters. And the main thing that hit home was that if I really did have a sibling, then I was never going to get the chance to meet him.

Brother...I'm sorry..

I've failed you..

Shutting my eyes, I remained immobile, letting my body shut down and succumb to the inevitable. You really don't get what you want out of life.

"Y/n!?"

I jolted at the familiar voice that suddenly erupted through the street, hearing heavy footsteps approaching me. Wrinkled, calloused hands gently clutched the sides of my face, lifting my head to meet the panicked eyes of...Myungsoo? "Heavens! Stay with me lass."

He eyed my form, taking in my crumpled state and injured hands. His face contorted at the sight and an expression of silent knowing made itself present instead.

"Myung...Myungsoo what-" I choked out another cough as more of my strange coloured blood came out and splattered onto the ground. A further look of confirmation took its place amongst his features as he viewed the unique liquid. Where he was understandably shocked at my near death state, he however didn't seem at all weirded out at my clear inhuman anomalies. Did he... know something?

"Myung..soo-"

"Shh, don't try ta talk." Rummaging through his pockets he pulled out a worn handkerchief and wiped away the remnants of blood from my mouth. "Cough into that if ya need." With that he lifted me up, making me surprised at the unexpected strength he possessed at his age. I guess that's a result of hauling around fish and equipment all day.

"Ye gonna be fine, I'm bringin' ye ta Yoongi."

My hazy mind frowned at the foreign name.

Yoongi?

He must've seen the look of confusion plastered on my face at his words, so with nothing else to lose he took a short breath in to elaborate.

"I was goin' ta talk to ya when ye were away from pryin' ears, disclose tha truth if ye will about ye n' your past. However, I guess my time has been cut short," he rambled as he slowly made his way towards the direction of the beach. "Yeona knew about 'em aswell, us bein' cousins n' all, we grew up together knowin'. No doubt that knowledge made adoptin' ye easier, not that she would've refused ta begin with."

"The dwellers of tha sea, merfolk they are. Since tha time of me granddaddy, the Min family have sworn this knowledge ta secrecy."

Feeling my eyebrows lifting and mouth opening, I couldn't help but let out a bewildered gasp.

"Wha- How....do...how do you know..?" I struggled to speak. Just when I had pieced things together myself, someone finally came out and told me straight, confirming that the very creature I suspected myself to be in fact exists. This definitely was far from a coincidence.

"Am I a..." I couldn't get the words out, but something in me wanted the man to say what I was thinking out loud.

"Ai child, ye be one of 'em... A mermaid."

Mouth set in a straight, taut line, all I could do was blink while trying my hardest to stay conscious.

A hunk of metal supported by worn tires came into view as Myungsoo brought us over to a vehicle parked in a vacant lot beside the beach. Somehow managing to get the passenger's door open with me still in his arms, he gently placed me down into the seat before clicking the accompanying seatbelt in place.

"Need....water..." I rasped out as he rounded over to the driver's side. "Right... m' sorry lass...ye must be parched." He reached back and grasped an old jug container handing it to me, but before I could take a much needed sip, he had grabbed it once more and poured a good heap of salt into it.

"What the h-"

"You'll find this is more satisfyin'," he answered for me, passing me the jug. "Drink up, this'll keep ya thirst down a lil' longer and gain some strength. Mer need their salt."

Still adjusting to him calling me an entirely different species, I briefly froze at the revelation.

Damn.. That's going to take some getting used to.

Taking a big swig of the seasoned water, I was expecting it to be almost undrinkable with the unhealthy amount of added sodium, however I found myself instead relishing in the sensation, gulping down every last savory drop. The salt water had surprisingly given me a minor energy boost.

Myungsoo turned the key in the ignition, the old motor rumbling to life, shaking the insides of the car. We pulled out onto the gravely road and took off along the coastline. All the while, I tried to get comfortable in my seat as a dozen questions floated around in my head waiting for some explanations.

"Why?.. Why didn't you say anything about this before... a-about mermaids and all?"

He gave me a meek smile, "Like I said, only me family knows of their existence. Even tha lads Dongha n' Sungwon don't know n' I tell 'em just about everythin'. Ye were always with 'em or company when I was with ya so talkin' was useless. Me granddaddy swore not ta tell any outsiders under tha request of a merman himself."

I listened to every word his heavily accented voice let out, shaking my head occasionally to dispel some lingering dizziness.

"Yoongi was tha Mer's name. He's visited us Mins for generations. He comes up n' gives us rare pearls on occasion as a form of thanks for savin' his life way back. Granddaddy Min found him one day on shore injured where he patched him up. A trust n' friendship was formed."

Astonished at the story and his grandfather's Good Samaritan act, I asked, "Wasn't your grandfather shocked at least...Coming across s-something that's meant to be make-believe?"

He chuckled, "Ai, me word! Thought he had one too many bottles o' soju n' nearly pissed his pants. Fell right on his haunches he did. Yoongi I heard was pretty amused by that." I weakly smiled at his recount.

"How...Why am I here on land? If I'm a...er...m-mermaid.. w-why do I have legs?"

The fisherman let out a contemplative hum as he briefly went to scratch the stubble on his chin. "Tha night the Yangs found ye, Yeona spoke of seein' a merman draggin' himself on ta shore, one of their young in his grasp."

Their young.. That must've been me.

"He didn't stay very long as it looked like he was bein' pursued. He was dragged back into tha sea by two other merfolk."

"He left tha baby, you, whether it be by choice or not, me n' Yeona weren't sure. How ye were able to turn human is also a mystery. Even when ye used ta go swimmin' when ya were a lil' older, ye still didn't change back."

I licked my lips to moisten them as I opted to tell him of my strange occurrences. Since fairytale creatures seem to miraculously exist, then I would assume recurring dreams and visions aren't as far fetched.

"I-I think that merman...he may have b-been my brother...I've been having dreams ever since...about the day Chinhae and my mother found me...T-there was always this man in them..."

"Do....do you think he survived? W-would my brother still be out there...?" He seemed so adamant about our reunion in my dreams, that he was waiting for me to come home to him.

Min Myungsoo let out a sigh as his hands tensed at the steering wheel. "I'd love ta say yes lass but...from what me cousin said ta me back then...it seemed he wasn't doin' too well...the other mer got him pretty good. A great big blotch o' purple was floatin' in tha waters afterwards."

Purple....I felt my chest weighing down on me. His blood...

I looked down at my hands where my cuts were now caked over with dry violet splotches, some sections turning black. My mouth trembled at the slim prospect of meeting my brother; my family.

"Don't fret lass, I'll always be here if ye need me. I'm sure Yoongi'll clear things up n' help ye out, bring ya up ta speed with tha ways of tha Mer."

"Urgh!" I cried out as pain erupted through my legs and my neck burned. Some of the skin peeled off when I went to rub at the soreness making me recoil, not wanting to cause more unintended damage to myself.

"We're almost there, try ta hang on a lil' longer," he encouraged, seeing me slowly deteriorating once again. "Yoongi always meets me at the place we're headin' to, it'll be safe for ye ta go without bein' seen."

Go. As in...go in the water?

Yet another important question arose.

"Um...What will happen to me, w-when I go in the water..?"

I already had a somewhat vague idea, however again, there was something about hearing it from someone who was clearly more knowledgeable about this topic that provided me with a form of closure.

"Well since ye be havin' symptoms...I would say you'd change back. Back to ya true form, with a tail..scales n' all."

I thought as much.

I didn't care about the repercussions at this point in time and how they would affect my life I have built up so far, all I wanted right now was to feel like I wasn't at risk of hacking up a lung or two. Said thought caused me to cough into the handkerchief making the fabric stain an ominous purple. Great..

I wonder what this Yoongi person is like? Would he be kind and welcoming like Myungsoo? I would assume so since he is friends with him and such. Would he be willing to help me with whatever I had to do in terms of being a mermaid? Amidst my withering state, uncontrollable insecurities made themselves known.

Are merpeople dangerous? I've heard stories about them known for drowning innocent victims...was that true? Would I have to do that for some weird initiation? Oh lord, would we have to eat them!? Hell to the no am I gonna become some kind of cannibal! Or does it still count as cannibalism if I'm not human. Do they even look like humans or more like fish? Would they even speak the same language? Would moving with a tail be hard? Will I still be able to go on land?

"Alrighty, we're here. Can ya walk?"

My worrying cut off, I looked up to see we had stopped in front of a section of beach surrounded by towering cliffs and eroded rock formations. All of these land features effectively concealed the shores from all sides making it the perfect place for privacy.

Cautious about what was to come next, I sat for a moment, eyes darting around and hands slightly trembling. "Ack!"

"Lass?"

For the third time now, my vision dissolved and reshaped itself, conjuring up a scene where the ocean was at the forefront and the main focus. I was wading in waist deep waters, every now and then skimming my fingers through them causing tiny ripples to disperse from where I touched. The feeling was nothing short of euphoric, body thriving in the enveloping salty expanse, like this was where I belonged. "That's right, this is home," the velvety voice of my brother rang out.

"You're almost there...the waters need you."

Startled, I felt the car door get harshly yanked open, a faint breeze hitting me in the face and knocking me out of my vision.

Blue.

Two cerulean orbs revealed themselves, staring me straight on as I blinked repeatedly coming to grips with the sudden view change.

"Aish! Yoongi no need ta scare tha poor lass. Give her some room," Myungsoo piped up, stepping into view alongside the newcomer.

"Y-you're Yoongi!?" I let out backing up in my seat away from the pale skinned, foot obsessed creep that I escaped from on the beach.

Same blank face as always from the small amount of time knowing him, he clicked his tongue in mock disappointment as he leant up against the doorframe. "Nice to see you too, don't get all excited on me now," he rasped sarcastically, rolling his eyes annoyed. "I'm still trying to get that damn sand you threw out of my eyes," he all but glared. "I might just return the favour."

Gulping at his animosity, I inched backwards again until I was now sitting in the driver's seat. Feeling for the door handle, I looked on warily, worried for what he may do.

Clearly seeing what I was doing, he huffed. "Oh no you don't! You're not getting away this time, not after I had to go through all the effort to come up here again just to save your freakin' neck."

"D-don't you dare come any closer!"

My outburst only further infuriated the male, him looking like a literal cat right now, ready to pounce on its prey out of sheer anger. If he had a tail, it would be all puffed up like crazy.

Heart spiking and body running purely on adrenaline now, I pushed the driver's door open and practically jumped out, taking off into the unknown which so happened to be towards the little beach cove we pulled up to. This probably wasn't the smartest idea since running in sand clearly was hindering my speed. Dammit Y/n you never think!

I heard a sound of vexation rumble from behind me. "Would you stop!" Yoongi shouted, as I heard him hot on my heels. "You're only making this harder for yourself!"

My limbs pulsed with the fright induced chemical as I focused on lengthening my distance between him and myself. However this desire was short lived and insufficient from the get go as my body soon had other plans.

Feeling light headed, dizziness took over and my throat seized up making me choke on the air I was gasping for. The effect of the adrenaline seemed to have worn off leaving my body in the downwards spiral it was in before. I all but toppled over like a sandcastle being kicked.

"Shit!" Yoongi crouched beside me just as I spluttered out another round of blood, painting the powdered sand a foreboding, dark violet. Hot and cold flushes erupted through my bloodstream as I sat back on my heels. I flinched back when the raven haired man went to grab my shoulder, as a result he sighed, drawing his hand back towards his body. Sensing another figure come up on my other side, their hand patted my back to ease my tension.

"Y/n dear listen ta me, he's not here ta hurt ya. He's me trusted friend, no need ta worry." The fisherman spoke gently like he was talking to a wounded animal – well – that wasn't far from the truth.

Pushing my said oppressor back away from me, Myungsoo crouched in front of me and rested a hand on my knee as he looked at me resolutely. "Ya need ta go with him, he'll help ya through this."

"Anytime now, you're not going to last much longer."

"Yoongi!" The fisherman scolded him.

"T-this is all going too fast..." I let out shakily, heart rate increasing once again. Everything just suddenly got real real fast and I wasn't sure I could handle it. "What about everything I have here, I-I can't just disappear, right?"

Even when my body was literally on its last legs, imploring me to seek respite in the deep blue depths of the sea, hesitation made itself known, ultimately preventing me from doing just that. Whether it be from fear of the unknown or not wanting to part from the normalcy of my current life, I was unsure. Maybe it was both.

"Rest assured lass, I'll figure the financials n' such. Tie up all ye loose ends. Just go, focus n' get better, do this for me, for us, for ya brother wherever he be."

"Wha- no why....? I-I can't let you do that! Why...why would you g-go through all that hassle for me?"

"Simple, cause it's tha right thing ta do." He answered wholeheartedly. "An' you're family, Yeona would be so proud of ye, how far you've come."

I couldn't help it, an unfiltered sob left my throat as several emotions surfaced. The amount of care and compassion he had for me just caused all of my walls to crumble, one or two tears slipping out.

"I...T-thank you so much...Myungsoo."

In silent consolation, the elderly man came and wrapped me up in a gentle hug. "Call me Uncle Soo, ye always used ta call me that."

I smiled bashfully, "Alright...U-uncle Soo.." With that he cracked a sun filled grin at my acceptance, patting my hands comfortingly. "Now my child, go and live how ye were meant ta."

He moved aside where two bare feet stepped in taking his place. Heavily contrasting against the pale legs they were attached to, they were littered with sharp jagged lines that criss-crossed and overlapped one another to form an uneven, unsightly, reddened surface. A sight that sparked an all round sense of familiarity as they were so similar and practically identical to my own. Eyes hovering over them for a few moments longer, I raised my head to see the standing figure of Yoongi as he looked at me expectantly, arms crossed.

"Y-you're a merman..."

He gave me an 'are you serious' kind of look, letting me know if it wasn't already obvious enough. "Good...you're catching on fast," more sarcasm.

"Yoongi, be nice," Myung – I mean – Uncle Soo sighed, clearly having enough of his attitude. The merman however huffed and gave him a dismissive wave.

"Now," he began, his attention completely on me. "Will you come willingly, or do I have to throw you in myself like we discussed before?"

His harsh questioning only elicited another disappointed sigh from his elderly friend, him clearly being ignored about putting an effort in to be nice and accommodating.

I breathed in shallowly, not wanting to feel the full extent of pain in my throat that that action would cause, nerves keeping me rooted in place.

"Transforming....d-does it hurt?"

| 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 | 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 | 𝐍𝐞𝐱𝐭 | ༄⋆

[ss-2dplatformer]

Day Eight (Part 1) State Machine for Animations in Unreal (and other miscellaneous)

As the title suggests (which I would hope it would), I am making a State Machine for for sprite animations in unreal.

Right now, I only have my basic, unmoving sprite.

I first have to delete the sprite so I'm left with nothing. Then I get my idle animation flipbook which I made on the previous day (realistically, it was 4 days ago) and drag it from the Content Drawer directly onto the mesh. As I had already changed the collision box around the mesh to fit the static sprite previously, I don't have to make any changes here.

Instead, I now go to the Event Graph in order to start making the State Machine.

After making some of it, I realise this is a lot harder than I initially thought. There seems to be some bugs at the minute, such as both of the flipbooks I have currently are playing simultaneously.

This definetly needs to be fixed.

In other news, (VERY OFF TOPIC) I finally fixed the blurry, jelly-like issue I had. It turns out I just had to turn off the auto-enabled anti-aliasing. So now it looks smooth!

Anyways, I decided to restart the state machine from scratch. After a little while, I end up with this.

I then added one for death, though there's no way for the game to track if I am dead or not as well as a return value that I forgot to include in the previous instance.

Then after changing my duplicated event tick to instead be a sequence off of the original event tick, everything started working.

Now I just need to tweak everything.

The main issue was the jump, with it looping while I was still in midair. The best solution I came up with for now was making the final frame of the jump last for about 10 seconds, because the character would never be airborne for that long.

Now, again, I just need to figure out how to make a flipbook not loop, so I am able to add in sprites that play when you take damage.

In other news, since last writing, I have actually now added a way for IsDead to track if my character is dead. My first half of the day is over, so I will continue in Part 2!

In terms of what I should continue working towards: I need to work on disabling movement once the character is dead, as well as getting the damage sprite to work properly. Additionally, I should work on making the Danger Zone sprites move backwards slightly, so you are able to still see your character infront of them. Maybe I'll add an alternate sprite that, once the player is at 2hp or less, the walking and jumping sprites (maybe idle too, if I can get it figured out) are then changed to have one of the eyes less open, like how they are with the death and taking damage sprite.

[tartanblogger]

Why Beethoven's 'The Daddy'

Ludwig Van Beethoven absolutely 'ROCKS' and I'll tell you why. Unlike Mozart, who had a loving, supportive, maybe sometimes overbearing but never cruel father, young Ludo's father was a drunken sot who used to drag him out of bed at all hours to play piano for him and his drunken cronies. When teaching Ludwig piano, he would smack the boy around the ears for making a mistake or not playing something as perfect as the father wanted.

A 'USELESS' DRUNK! Unlike his extremely gifted son, the father was a third rate singer whose own father reached high circles in music and had an excellent reputation in the field. Perhaps there was resentment passed on to his son. Although cruel, I also believe the father sometimes had little moments of genuine adoration for his son's talent and deep inside, knew Ludwig was destined for greater things!

THE PRISONER, LOCKED AWAY!

Many times, the young Beethoven was shoved into a darkened cellar and locked in by his father. Think of the fear and anguish that must have gone through the young lad's mind. No doubt these affected how he shaped up in later life!

A SENSE OF DUTY!

Ludwig had two brothers and when one of them (Kaspar) died, Ludwig took care of his nephew Karl until Karl was old enough to break from his 'as-he- saw it' overbearing' uncle. The fact remains 'though, that Ludwig showed a paternal love, care and devotion to his brother's child, something that he himself lacked in his early years.

BEETHOVEN and MOZART

When Beethoven had moved to Vienna, he sought out the famous Mozart and had a few lessons with him before having to return to his mother's funeral in Germany. Mozart, who was impressed by Ludwig (no mean feat, to impress Mozart) is reported to have stated that Beethoven would be an important figure in the world stage and one to watch out for in the future! Again...coming from the musical genius Mozart, that is indeed 'high' praise!

A MAN OF PRINCIPLES!

As a person, Beethoven was also a man of high principles. He once wrote the EROICA (heroic) symphony and dedicated it to Napoleon Bonaparte who had liberated parts of Europe and who was in Ludwig's eyes, a hero!

However, later, when Beethoven had heard that his hero had now declared himself an 'emperor' (Beethoven had little regard for titled folk) he took the manuscript and violently scratched out Napoleon's name, leaving the manuscript damaged!

OUT OF THE SILENCE - CAME GREATNESS!

If you can imagine a sculptor or carpenter losing their hands, you would conclude that to be a tragedy. Think on then, of how probably THE greatest composer in the world, lost his hearing at just twenty eight years of age!!!

Can you even grasp what torture that would be...never to hear the world around you or your precious gift of music, ever again! With Beethoven's gradual hearing loss, he wasted precious time and money on 'quack' cures and doctors who had no remedy or cure.

Yet although when eventually he was stone deaf, Beethoven produce some of the finest works of music ever known...ALL from the silence of his malady! Yet the mind, the great mind was still working.

Considering Beethoven's superb piano and composition skills, he was definitely unique..a one-off! When speaking to a wealthy and powerful prince one day, Beethoven was reported to have said (I paraphrase here) "princes come and go, but there is one ONE BEETHOVEN!" And he was absolutely right. Beethoven was not just an ordinary man, nor composer. He was in every sense of the word, an EXTRAORDINARY genius! A giant of music.

copyright JG Conn aka Tartan Composer 11/04/2024.

[xprojectrpg]

Moment of Awesome - Theresa Cassidy/Banshee:While she, Meggan Szardos and Sam Guthrie are assisting in evacuation during Behold A Pale Horse, Terry is pushed to her limits.

"Aye," Terry murmured, nodding a little dully. She'd let her own shield fall a little when Sam buffered them, relief zinging between her temples in the moment before he and Meggan settled on the plan to move the victims. "Actually, if you'll steady her upper body, I'll just lift from the bottom and if you're flyin' as well, I can keep the shield beneath all of us to block anything they might throw." She considered their situation, then wished she'd been involved in something that involved screaming and flinging things around. She could keep that up for hours without getting tired. Flying was nearly second nature at this point, and at least she'd had plenty of practise flying with Kyle. It was maintaining the shield whilst doing everything else that might do her in. But not until after she'd gotten this woman somewhere safe. "Let's get goin', loves."

Sam waited until he was sure that Terry and Meggan were far enough up that they wouldn't be hit before grabbing the other passenger from the car. He dropped his shield and then allowed the blasts to come from his feet, propelling him and his passenger through the air and after the others. As soon as they were all landed, he glanced between the women. "Everyone alright?"

“I think so? Yes,” Meggan confirmed as they landed with their cargo as carefully as possible. When it came to her, she mostly just had a few scratches from some of the broken glass when she was wielding the ski pole, but it was nothing major, and could easily be taken care of in a little while. Aside from that, she was doing okay. “Terry?”

"Mm... aye," Terry agreed, swaying a little on her feet. She sat down rather abruptly, still maintaining the soundwave keeping the woman from the crash floating just a bit. "Och. Maybe no'," she murmured, accent thickening. "I'll just stay here a mo'."

Sam kept an eye on Terry, hoping that she'd be good enough to fly out of here. "What else can I do? I'm not as tired as you two yet. How can I help?"

Meggan wasn’t sure what she could do for Terry, but she did still want to help; she crouched near the other woman. “Just let me know when you need an extra shoulder, and I’ll be right here for you to lean on.” If she went down, then Meggan wasn’t sure who to break the fall of, between Terry and the levitating crash lady—while she estimated it wasn’t that far of a drop for the latter, she couldn’t say what the effect of a sudden extra shock might do.

She shook her head in response to Sam’s question. Could just being there be enough? “I’m not sure. I half want to go back for the ski pole, or find something else that’s strong enough from the debris, so we can fashion a makeshift stretcher for her, and let Terry rest her powers.”

"You two," Terry said, waving her hand toward Sam and Meggan. "Y'go on. Help others. I'll keep watch o'er these ones here. I'll be fine, now I'm sittin'. Y'shouldn't waste time wi' me. I'll jus' call someone for a pick up."

Sam nodded, and helped the person in his arms lay down gently on the ground. Turning to Meggan he nodded his head slightly, deferring to her directions. “Lead the way.”

Meggan spared another concerned look at Terry before they started off. "If you're sure," she began, before she stopped. She didn't want to just leave her in this state.

Once this was done, she vowed that she would come back in a little while and make sure that someone had come to collect Terry. Meggan signaled to Sam that she was ready, and began to point a few things out. She had spotted a discarded baseball bat and assorted long items on the scene that could be put to good work. And if several people had torn off their shirts in the heat of things, then they could be tied together, just as she had said.

Terry waved the two of them off, watching as they took flight. Pulling her mobile from her pocket, she considered who she might be able to call for assistance - certainly none of the usual suspects, as they were all out helping people in the district. She shook herself a little, finally laying the woman she had hovering to the ground. The other passenger came to tend to her, so Terry let her powers rest a moment, once again feeling that immediate release of tension between her temples. She'd developed a certain sense of throbbing behind that, a sharp thing that almost seemed to stab at the backs of her eyes.

She was fine, though. It wasn't until she hit 'call' for one of her friends from the Community Centre that she felt the tell-tale trickle coming from her nose. Touching it out of pure, simple habit, Terry wasn't surprised to see blood on her fingers. "Shite," she muttered.