#maybe some temporary conflict as they all work their shit out

[eternally-tired-cryptid]

Doctor who fic idea:

Rose Tyler for various reasons gets herself back to the Doctors universe, she lands somewhere without a good means of transport, a clue where or when she is, and sets off for hints of the Doctor.

When she finally finds someone who mentions him in passing, she's not the only one to approach the person. River Song approaches.

A disaster ensues, interrupting the women's conversation abt how to locate the doctor. Rose and River rush to figure out what's happening and help people

Neither woman properly explains their connection to the doctor at first (tho River knows of Rose Tyler, River is the wife of the Doctor, despite his hesitancy to acknowledge the pain of losing Rose, and thus his unwillingness to address his time with Rose, River knows. The TARDIS filled in some of the bits the Doctor wouldn't share. River knows enough. River knows that her relationship w the Doctor is different from Rose. That their two relationships can and in fact do coexist.)

After the event, River offers to travel with Rose and help locate the Doctor, and they do so, soon finding themself on another adventure.

Over the course of a few monster of the week style adventures, each woman slowly reveals more abt herself and why she's looking for the Doctor. By the time they find him, they're roughly on the same page, but just because they've reconciled both their relationships w the Doctor doesn't mean he has.

The Doctor finds Rose back in his life after so many years apart, where he was convinced he'd never see her again, and things are rocky, but he's not upset. No, he's overjoyed to have Rose back, if terrified of losing her again, or worse, messing everything up

[imaginedreamwrite]

How would the morning after Steve's Birthday look like for HR reader, Steve and Bucky?

There was an uncertain time that had passed between you attending Steve’s birthday party celebration and the late hours bleeding into early morning fucking that left you reeling.

You were sore, your body ached from being tossed around and screwed, shared between Steve & Bucky while being stretched and toyed with. Every inch of your body ached, every single part of you was sore and weary.

You felt it when you woke up in their Alaskan king bed alone, the ache between your legs and pleasured bruises that would appear soon. You were thrown through the ringer and with every exchange of saliva, every stroke of their cocks inside you had brought you immense pleasure.

And soreness.

Your exhaustion had bled into consciousness, and as you made sense of the world you realized you needed to get out. You had to escape before it was too late, before they came back and found you or worse, before any of the other stark employees found you leaving their room. If they had, and you had been caught, it would be a serious conflict of interest to be their HR rep.

Scrambling from the bed, you tripped on the sheets and landed in the carpet beneath the frame. You crawled on your hands and knees to find your dress, ripping it from the floor while remaining ignorant to the strips of cloth that lay scattered elsewhere. Even if you could find all the lingerie, it was ruined now.

“I’ve gotta get out of here.” You screwed up, willingly letting your emotions get the better of you to allow yourself to be fucked.

Now you had to do the walk of shame, something you hadn’t done since college.

With your dress in hand you yanked the material up your legs, over your hips and breasts only to find yourself at an impasse when it came to the back. You wouldn’t have been able to do it yourself without some help and the idea of waiting around was not possible.

“Shit!” You squeaked and frantically looked around the room for something to aid you, finally settling on a button down thrown across the back of a chair. “Shit, shit, shit!”

You yanked the shirt over your head and knotted it at your waist, the temporary fix working well enough for you to leave. After you’d found your missing heels, you slipped from the bedroom and tiptoed down the hall, mindful of where Steve or Bucky could have been.

Truthfully, the sex was phenomenal. It was the best you’d ever had, and the strain on your body was proof. You were ragged, you were sore and worked over.

But it was still awkward. To you, it was a confession of your feelings and a giant leap off of the Grand Canyon that you weren’t ready for.

Instead of taking baby steps, you dive bombed head first.

“Don’t get caught, don’t get caught.” You walked slowly, finding their place quiet yet cozy and you’d wondered if they were in the apartment at all.

There was a soft melody playing from the radio, and a few gifts still in bags on the counter but no verbal or physical sign of Steve or Bucky.

It wasn’t until you’d gotten closer to the front door that you’d heard the sound of running water somewhere in their place. You didn’t know whether that was from a shower somewhere in the apartment, or maybe laundry on the last few minutes of the cycle but it scared you.

“Get out,” you told yourself, clutching your heels and bag to your chest before you’d slipped out and closed the door behind you.

You had a one track mind, a goal that drove you to the elevator. You were going to slip away without being caught, you were going to leave and then you could return to a state of denial.

You watched the elevator climbing floors and the numbers increasing up above the doors. You watched and waited with bated breath as the floor you needed was reached and your escape could be made. You had been so eager to flee that you’d taken a step forward, and crashed into a wall of muscles.

“Leaving already, baby?” Bucky caught you, his hands resting on your shoulders while he pushed you back out of the elevator, a teasing smirk on his face. “Without saying goodbye?”

“Bucky please-!” You half-pleaded with him, verbally fighting back whilst he physically guided you to walk backwards. “I have to go-”

“We’re not done with you yet.” Bucky’s soft hand cupped your cheek, his thumb stroking your skin. “We have so much more to do.”

“Buck-”

“I hope you’re hungry, sweetheart.” Steve spoke over you, stepping out of their apartment with a smirk to match Bucky’s. “Can’t leave before aftercare.”

[firsttarotreader]

Youve done loads of readings about how he protects himself from falling in love because he doesnt want the pain. What if we look at it the other way around And if he thinks about what will happen to the other person if they fall in love with him. Kind of like yknow the whole "I wouldnt inflict myself on them" sort of thing?

Hello! So, this was a cool question and the answer was fun! I first asked directly if he thinks about what will happen to the other person if they fall in love with him. You see, this is a different situation than what we usually do. He’s more insecure and uncertain when he doesn’t know if the person will want him back or feel the same, but this is about the idea that the person is in love or if they fall in love with him. The Major Arcana were The Tower, The Fool and The Magician.

The Tower means he might think he’s gonna be like a huge shakeup in the person’s life, like lightning hitting a tower and making it crumble, a force of nature. Lol But this shakeup shall be a good thing because The Fool represents the start of something new and exciting, a new journey full of potential. The Magician furthers this notion with the idea that he’s gonna bring creativity and desire and the will to experiment, that new thing that opens up a lot of possibilities for someone’s life.

The Minor Arcana were the Page of Wands, Ace of Pentacles and 2 of Swords reversed. Page of Wands with The Tower is about that shakeup he’s gonna be in the person’s life being linked to someone who’s like a boy excited to discover the new, to explore everything, full of energy and eager to start something from the debris of The Tower. Ace of Pentacles with The Fool is A LOT of potential, success, luck and abundance and possibly lots of physical and sexual energy too. 2 of Swords reversed with The Magician, however, could be pointing to him feeling indecisive somehow, confused, like he will have to choose between the lover and other aspects of his life, or maybe just the indecisiveness he has said is a part of him in a Casillero del Diablo interview from 2021.

So all that is telling us that Pedro wouldn’t really be that negative about his presence in the life of a person that falls in love with him (not really talking about unrequited love, but mutual). He thinks he’s gonna be a good thing to them, a radical change, a shakeup, but still good. His indecisiveness might be an issue though.

Then I asked more loosely for more information and the first pull was the 9 of Flowers, Knight of Flowers and The Emperor. 9 of Flowers points to some hesitation and the feeling that he could fail the person in a way. Because he knows he would probably be the Knight of Flowers, so intense and passionate but fleeting, as if he knew he would most likely be temporary in their lives. But it ends with The Emperor, like he knows he can still be there for them, be stable, reliable, he will make it clear that you are his partner and he will not keep you a secret.

The second pull was the 7 of Hedgehogs, 7 of Flowers reversed and King of Teacups. So with 7 of Hedgehogs, he would believe he could work with the person to build something, and 7 of Flowers reversed means they wouldn’t have to fight because he can work out any conflict they might have. If they gave up and gave in, the King of Teacups would flourish, that is, he would be able to love them, care for them and be emotionally balanced with them.

The last pull was the 3 of Teacups, 2 of Flowers and Queen of Flowers. 3 of Teacups points to him thinking he would be lots of fun and joy in the person’s life, with 2 of Flowers representing all the ideas and plans he would have with them. Queen of Flowers shows us he might believe he would be pure fire energy in their lives, he would be passionate, determined and sexually invested in them.

So basically the cards don’t show him thinking he wouldn’t inflict himself on the person who fell in love with him because he feels like he’s gonna be the shit in their lives, he’s gonna be fire, and they’re gonna have lots of fun. Lol his worries would be more about his indecisiveness and his Knight of Wands (Flowers) traits, of being intense but fleeting.

[steakout-05]

i've already replied to this one but it struck a chord with me.

bullies HATE when they're overpowered. they're afraid of it. they feel threatened by it because the little toy they've been pushing around is suddenly pushing them instead and now they don't know what to do. using your words, taking all the teacher's advice and trying to "be the bigger person" will only get you bullied more and more and more because that is not what bullies respond well to. they take that as a sign of weakness and will only escalate it further, and at that point it becomes a situation where you can no longer use your words anymore and you have to use your fists. you have to listen to your survival instincts and fight back, because the shit teachers preach to you with, all the washed out "ignore it" "be nice to them" "tell them to stop"s, will just make you into a pushover. giving that bully a swift punch in the nose, a kick to the stomach (or the nuts) and a firm elbow shove to the chest will show them that you are a threat, they will face consequences for enacting actions on you and that you will not be an easy target for them. they will learn the lesson of "playing stupid games gets you stupid prizes" and likely won't try to fuck with you again. give them the biggest reaction they could ever hope for.

look i understand that using your words is generally considered to be a more "mature" solution to a conflict and that you can't always take the physical route when you're an adult, but the point where it becomes harassment is no longer a conflict. that is now a chain of abuse, and every single person deserves to know how to physically defend against that. i also understand that sometimes, physical defence might escalate something into full blown violence, in which people should also be taught backup strategies like surrounding yourself with other people and contacting the police (as much as i hate the police, sometimes they can help) if needed.

teachers should be giving people self-defence strategies. there should be classes on how to use your body to fight against harassment when words fail you. but they aren't for some reason that i'm not entirely sure why (apart from what op said about teachers never experiencing bullying themselves). maybe it's a control thing. maybe it's a systemic thing. i'm not sure. but the point is that they aren't and they really REALLY should be because it works.

any punishment you could get for defending yourself physically in school is temporary. the effects of trauma from bullying lasts forever. you deserve the skills to be able to end this cycle and show them who not to fuck with. do not forgive and do not forget.

“The bullying will go away if you just handle it with enough grace and kindness” is a disgusting lie that could only ever be perpetuated by someone who has never been bullied before. Anyone who has ever experienced real bullying knows that bullied respond to one thing and one thing only; consequences.

[mikuni14]

La Pluie and Step by Step are shows that send me a lot of conflicting signals. 

I see these shows trying to present themselves as something new and unique and mature (I think?), and at the same time ruin even the best scenes and moments with the silliest / oldest romance tropes. Without the classic BL tropes these shows would be real adult productions for adult viewers but I can't take them seriously because these shows just couldn't resist some old and boring shit like love triangles, "handsome and rich v cute and dorky", "there was only one bed", literal interpretation of soul mate concept, misunderstanding, lack of communication, etc. Step by Step tries to be a show for adults, but for me, because of a lot of stupid and comedic scenes, it's actually pretty silly, it’s a classic Thai BL drama, and tbh the characters are mentally at the level I would expect from a high school romance. La Pluie is a series that I thought would like to take a modern approach to the soul mate idea, but after 7 episodes, for me, this is a production that takes this concept literally. Phat and Tai are absolutely in love with each other as they’re supposed to be following the very core of the soul mate idea, and I feel that Lomfon, as well as Saengtai's trauma conveniently appearing and disappearing when the plot needs it, are just a temporary distraction from "the beautiful and glorious idea of destined lovers". 🙄

I can't take Step by Step seriously because neither Jeng nor Pat have ever been shown having dilemmas about their rapidly growing infatuation and their huge  power inbalance. Jeng, in particular, focuses on pampering and spoiling Pat, with absolutely no thought about actually having the romantic and sexual relationship with his subordinate at their work place. And since they slept together in the same bed, which is something unimaginable to me in the real world and possible only in a very silly romance productions, there's no way I'm taking this show seriously :) The "maturity" of this show should be about two people in unequal positions, who are in love with each other and HOW THEY DEAL WITH IT. There should be numerous problems and issues to handle, like money, career, gossip, family, co-workers, HR reactions... because that's how life actually is. Jeng doesn’t think about it, Pat still treats Jeng as one of his options. Like...????? 

And I can't take La Pluie seriously either, because the show lost me when Saengtai, hating and not trusting the idea of soul mates, becomes pretty cool with it the moment he discovers that his soul mate is handsome. Notice how since then Saengtai proudly introduces Phat to everyone around as his soul mate. Not as a new friend, maybe an object of interest, a potential boyfriend, not even as Phat - ALWAYS AS HIS SOUL MATE.  To all the old and worn-out tropes like destined lovers, lack of proper communication, hiding inconvenient facts (for the greater good of course) the show now added "one of the MLs is being kissed by someone else and of course second ML enters this scene, then runs away when he sees it" and the overdramatic and long way of shooting those kind of scenes. UNLESS Phat really let his ex kiss him for so long, and it's not just prolonging the kiss scene for more drama 🤔 Because Phat didn't push his ex away right away, he didn't stop the kiss immediately. This kiss takes a while... And now there will be another drama and of course it will turn out to be another big misunderstanding and it will be about Tai being over emotional in his reaction to someting insignificant and easy to explain and I’m just tired 😴 *deep sigh* *remembering fondly how Jiu resisted Mat and immediately run after Tian to clear up the misunderstanding right away and that was just a soap opera*

Also, the funniest thing is, that in any other show, the way Saengtai stares at, talks to and how he acts towards Phat's ex girlfriend would be considered love at the first sight 😃 I know it’s not intentional and the series was just trying to mess with Saengtai, make it more painful when he will finally see That Kiss, but it only means to me, that they haven’t really thought this series through, because it honestly looked like he was into her :D

Anyway, to me, both of these shows pretend to be something they're not, they're just classic BL shows using old and often irritating tropes when they don't really have to. And yet, from time to time, they manage to sneak in very good ideas, interesting and truly innovative scenes and themes. And these are the mixed signals that these shows send me: silliness, comedy, old tropes, the inability to leave behind the roots of BL series mixed with the still untapped potential of being something new, interesting, innovative, which unexpectedly breaks through from time to time.

[b0rista]

i keep seeing dad!levi on the tl and i cant stop thinking abt him as a dad😩 can i request drabble/hc/fic of levi and his s/o adopting gabi and falco🥰 no thoughts. just dad!levi brainrot go brrrrt

— ADOPTIVE FATHER! LEVI HEADCANONS + FALCO & GABI. ♡︎

AUTHOR'S NOTES: gn! reader.

never would you have ever expected to take in a pair of children as your own. better yet, never would you have ever expected him to. while you knew his soft side all too well, everyone has their limits.

gabi and falco moving in with you and levi likely just,, happened. a temporary housing for them, considering they had nowhere else to go. seeing as though imprisonment for a second time was a bit of a reach, it was a minor debate within headquarters regarding what to do with the two. through careful consideration, your lover made a decision.

what better way to supervise them than in our own home?

of course, the thought conflicted you. the enemy, living with you? sure, they were barely teenagers, but that didn't make them any less capable of murdering you in your slumber.

knowing levi, though, that would never be the case. the man was already the world’s most calculating insomniac, lord knows he’d never let either of those kids out of his sight. especially not around you. 

nevertheless, your guys’ experience living with the remaining warriors of marley would be far more different than either of you would ever think to realize. 

ACTUAL HEADCANONS BELOW: ⇩︎

to your surpise, falco’s quite literally the sweetest pre-teen to ever roam the earth. of course, you’d only assumed it was all an act. that was,, until you genuinely caught him attempting to befriend levi's horse one morning. he was outside holding a fistful of grass, holding it out to the thing as if it were some sort of a beast. eventually, you joined him, and you showed him just how to handle it. and while the boy seemed skeptical at first, you saw that glimmer in his eyes the moment the horse allowed him to pet its mane. from the window, levi only watched.

speaking of levi's horse, that thing absolutely despises gabi. you're not quite sure why, but it does. you've literally had to run out and claw her hair out from between its teeth before— she's scReaminG, you'Re screaming, even the horse is screaming.

"why does this keep happening to me?!"

"this has happened befoRe?"

whenever either of the two children curse, levi's quick to correct them. despite having quite the foul mouth himself, he doesn't hesitate whenever he has to toss out a blunt "language."

^ at first, they were bitter. with time, though, they stopped swearing.

a key moment in time that helped develop you and falco's relationship was one afternoon where he was helping you out with yard work. somehow, his little crush on gabi came up, and the two of you got to talking about it. after giving him some genuine, appropriate advice for a kid with a crush, he really did start looking at you differently.

as for levi and gabi, those two bonded over intense, hilarious training. he found her punching the air in his backyard, and decided to drop in with a few sarcastic pointers. somehow, it ended in him kicking the poor girl around like a rag doll— not violently, he never hurt her. instead, he fended off each and every attack she fired at him, leaving her absolutely exhausted. she was tired out, and he was perfectly fine. imagine gabi, laying on the ground, tired as shiT, and levi, gently nudging the toe of his boot into her side:

"you can fight, but you're messy. if you ever stand a chance at surviving this war you started, i suggest you clean up your act."

cue gabi, glaring.

"if you care so much, then help me become better."

and so he did 🥺🥺 the two bond over levi practically coaching her, and as the days merge into weeks, she grows to actually respect levi, and maybe even look up to him.

basically, while you and falco live your cottagecore lives and bond over horses and apple picking, levi and gabi beat the everliving shit out of eachother in the backyard. it's a great balance.

for the first couple of nights, eating at the dinner table with those two was disgustingly awkward. it was utter silence, nothing more. however, one night, falco dropped his fork, and when he bent down to get it, he looked underneath the table for a milliseconD— there levi was, leaned down, stArinG at him. it was both hilarious and terrifying altogether, and falco ended up screeching and knocking his head into the table, hard.

"I WAS GETTING A F O R K-"

"and? gRemlin."

it surprised all of you, hearing gabi laugh. a genuine, real laugh. eventually, that turned into a conversation. and after that, you had conversations during every dinner. the development process was cruel, but worth it.

the kids help you prepare breakfast in the morning while levi downs his fourth cup of tea at the table, and it's always cute. because of you, falco knows how to make scrambled eggs! and also because of you, gabi knows how to prank somebody using an uncooked noodle. literally, she just places a piece of it between her teeth, pretend to crack her nose, and crunch. she made falco scReAm, and levi just looked at you like 🤨 bitch, tf are u teaching her

now, this was around three months into supervising them. one night, they were sitting alongside you on the sofa, and you were reading them a story. while falco was into it, gabi thought it was silly— still, though, she listened. eventually, they passed the hell out on either side of you. you drifted off, as well. when you woke up, you'd woken up to levi, his head rested onto your lap while his knees prop him up from the floor. by the looks of it, he wanted to be included.

whenever either of them step out of line, they earn a swift flick to the forehead from levi. it's a daily thing. gabi says something stupid, flick. falco slacks off during chores, flick. one time, gabi tried flicking him back, and it just started a flick war. you were done with all three of them.

both gabi and falco love telling you about marley's technology. you'd never heard of such things, and to know that they exist? shit, the look on your face is priceless. they absolutely adore getting a reaction out of you, and they often butt heads over who gets to tell you what. when they do, cue the overly aggressive forehead flicks from levi.

while levi told you not to, you couldn't help yourself. you showed them just how cool it is to use ODM gear. of course, they lost their shit, because holy hell that looks fun. your boyfriend, of course, caught you swinging from tree to tree while the two children gawked at you, and he gave you a stern talking to. before he did, though, that motherfucker joined you in the trees. again, the kids lost it.

"loOKATTHEMFALCOLOOKLOOK-"

"i'MloOokinG-"

eventually, they just think you guys are the coolest people they've ever come across. which stirs up one heLL of an identity crisis for gabi, because,, lol aren't y'all devils or sum?

[seewetter]

#liberals love to be like “we need to abolish the police and prisons and the military industrial complex and borders and tax the rich at 99%#liberals love to say shit like “no war but class war”#liberals are always saying to me “any progressive movement is doomed without a militant vanguard like the black panther party”#i mean i just can't get liberals to shut up about “we need universal free healthcare housing education and transportation NOW”#seriously someone stop liberals saying “if the world waged war against the usamerican empire it would be justified and a historic good”#i am seriously up to my ears in all these toothless liberal platitudes

Hm.

I think maybe the source of conflict here is differing definitions of the word liberal. There's the "Love me I'm a liberal" types -- who are effectively moderates and anti-progressives. But the word liberal can also encompass social democratic demands for universal free healthcare, housing, education and transportation. The word liberal can refer to progressive liberals that hate the American empire. It can refer to liberal populists that want to tax the rich at 99%. It doesn't have to refer to toothless centrist liberals.

Now as for abolishing borders, police, prisons and MI-complex, those broad and ambitious projects are not just highly unlikely among centrist liberals, they also carry a strong sense of taboo in such circles and are often only under discussion among progressives / left-liberals. After all, even social democrats in Europe usually shy away from demanding police abolition (or even defunding) and the Overton window on prison abolition or border removal (especially where borders with the non-West are concerned) is definitely far enough to the right that liberals with those views are highly uncommon.

I don't know if this anon ask came out of nowhere with zero context? But I do think that Marxism is something utterly different from any of the positions listed here.

Marxism is an economic analysis that does not compel people to adopt a particular political stance. Meaning that there are right-wing Marxists like Peter Sloterdijk, for example. So the answer to "why are you as a Marxist talking like a liberal" might be "because Marxists can be liberals". Checkmate.

However, I do think that Marxism usually gets people to view things not in terms of superstructure, but in terms of economic base. We are not working to eliminate classism, we are working to eliminate poverty. And it comes with an awareness of how irreducible the profit motive is to the economic base of "capitalism" (the capitalistic mode of production). In other words, taxing the rich is like all social democratic reform a temporary measure that will disintegrate once the rich have found a way to disintegrate it. Basically a Marxist doesn't agree with "The Christmas Carol" where the happy ending involves the rich man discovering his conscience -- because Marxism perhaps somewhat cynically (I would argue: realistically) says that the Scrooges that discover their heart tend to go out of business because their heartless competitors don't hold back and not holding back pays. (Not all Scrooges go out of business, but as long as profit is rewarded, the overall effect is that "greed is good", in a kind of objective sense -- ruthlessness reaps rewards).

Generally I don't mind demands for free housing & transportation & healthcare & education (etc.) but these demands are moral demands. They are demands built on a desire for people to be better and act better. But Karl Marx's entire worldview is built on the assumption that such moral demands are not objectively how these realities assert themselves. That is to say: tugging on heartstrings or pointing out moral failings is like playing Ghost of Christmas Past. That is also to say: moral demands often open the door to immoral responses -- we say open your heart & some jackass writes and article saying that what must be done must be done & that is to close our hearts to do what is necessary. Karl Marx in his writings sort of forgoes that entire dynamic by arguing that the poor outnumber the rich and the poor are self-interested and if the poor get together the rich will lose and we all need to make our peace with that.

All this is to say that its wild to me how people like anon think liberalism and Marxism are incompatible but also how the "proof" of Marxist thought seems to be that we are more concerned with morality than fence-sitting centrist enablers of the status quo whom we dub "liberals" for convenience.

Now I agree that "we are the majority" doesn't always work, when our concern is universal human emancipation and the target is a minority -- although to be fair, most people are PoC, most people are women, most people will have disabilities and mental illnesses at some point in their lives and most people struggle with poverty. But I do think it's healthy to try and develop a kind of "realist" argumentation. I want to be able to -- at all times -- make libertarians and neoliberals realize they are hopelessly sentimental compared to the cold hard data and facts and the realistic assessments of the radical left. That seems like a worthwhile legacy of Marxism to preserve. We might (?) have a bigger heart than other people, but if we brag about that (or make it the thing that distinguishes Leftists or even Marxists from others) some folks on the outside will decide they can't compete and try having no heart on purpose. We become the touchy-feely people and they become the steeled realists who do what is necessary. Part of the beauty of Marx is that the tables are turned: the touchy-feely ones are the non-Marxist socialists who, in the words of Oscar Wilde (in his pro-Marxist essay The Soul of Man Under Socialism) "entertain" the poor with charity and education programs, and also the touchy-feely ideas come from sentimental conservatives, lost in their nostalgia for an imagined past, or in naivete about the free market etc. Marx can position his politics as cutthroat -- as without alternative -- and I think his position works especially well given how many aspects of Leftist politics arise out of necessity, arise because society is in bad need of solutions.

Obviously where the Left exactly starts and ends is contentious. But I do think that it's worth considering the path Marx charted for his pursuit of freedom and also worth developing a healthy skepticism towards big programmatic politics that frame themselves as compassionate, especially in a time when rainbow capitalism (and imperialism) have gotten so good at aping compassion.

Why do you, as a marxist, talk like a liberal

[uwupissarozzieuwu]

I’m really interested to see how you write Ozzie because the fics events are such a conflicting situation to be in. How can you best support the person you love to maintain his dignity and independence with all that going on? Esp after the limbs are back but then he’s still not taking care of his body all that well. Would Ozzie put his foot down and ask him to take time off work? Or would he just let fizz get on with stuff and trust him to get over the difficult time he’s had in his own way?

Ozzie’s going to have a lot of conflicting feelings throughout all of this. Mostly concern and worry, but also a lot of other emotions, as well.

Something to keep in mind throughout all of it, is that he’s Asmodeus, a Sin of Hell. Man has a shit ton of responsibilities. And while he does his best to help Fizz to the best of his abilities, he can’t be all he focuses on. He still has work to do- running a club, running a ring, everyone’s boss, making schedules, answering phone calls- all on top of caring for a person he loves. Man is stressed out of his mind. He’s having a hard time doing it all on his own, but then again, he doesn’t really have a choice. So when Fizz makes things harder by not communicating, that really, really frustrates Ozzie. Yes, it’s due to mental illness. He knows that Fizz honestly is trying to do his best, and not communicating is something he’s been taught will keep him safe in the past. These are trauma responses, and they’re understandable. However, just because they’re understandable, doesn’t mean they’re not angering.

Maybe Oz briefly snaps at Fizz at some point. He almost instantly regrets it, and apologizes after he cools down, but Fizz is very vulnerable right now, his trauma responses having a lot of control over him right now, and it scares him a little. Once they’ve both cooled down, it’s fine, but Ozzie still feels really bad- even if it was a simple and understandable mistake.

There’s a point in the fic where Fizz gives in, and starts slowly communicating more, and things get a bit easier for the both of them. Ozzie’s able to focus on his work more, which is really good.

When Fizz gets his limbs back, he’s restless, and excited, and wants to get back to work. Oz suggests he take a few days to recover from what he put his body through, and to make sure his limbs are in proper working order. But Fizz has been offstage for about a week now, and wants to go back to normal. He won’t listen to any of Ozzie’s suggestions, even if they’re as simple as small, temporary adjustments to his schedule to give him more breaks. Ozzie sees the possibilities of what’s to come from a mile away, and tries to warn Fizz. But Fizz refuses to acknowledge what happened, and refuses to say or do anything more about it. And there’s nothing more Ozzie can really do about that.

[chronurgy]

Gortash the bridezillla...."Durge, dearest, the florist is not respecting my vision. Please see that they meet with an unfortunate accident I think their apprentice will be far more accommodating"

And honestly I actually think most of the companions would take the fiancé thing worse! For one, your LI is going to be sitting there like "bro am I the side piece?" I think most of them would not exactly be thrilled to find out that you're in a long term clearly intense relationship with, well, Gortash. I think even the poly companions would say no thank you to that shit show lol. Plus it's one thing to be in on the evil plan but people could pretty easily rationalize and downplay that to themselves, but being engaged to him indicates that you weren't just some flunky or his instrument or being used by him, you're fully into it. You played a massive role and intended to keep playing one (and if he was using you then you were using him just as much). So I almost think they'd take the engaged thing worse because now they can't hid behind those justifications. Also, I think they'd be way more suspicious about durge going back over to gortash. A lot of the companions treat agreeing to ally with him as clearly a temporary thing where you'll use him for now, but I don't think they would think that if you were engaged to him, especially if he showed durge any sort of genuine affection in public (okay omg pda at his coronation, like kissing their hand or something with a conflicted durge who knows this looks so bad but doesn't want him to stop). I think then they would see any alliance between them as more likely to be permanent (because why shouldn't it be, you two were going to be married and clearly held some amount of trust and respect for one another) in a way that would have fun repercussions.

"Um, actually, we must have a three week honeymoon pleasure cruise. It's absolutely integral to the plan, duh" says Gortash. "But we need to engage in lots of public pda otherwise the plan won't work at all," says Durge, applying another layer of chapstick. I love the idea of them just justifying progressively crazier stuff in the name of the plan. I also kinda love the idea that they're both deluding themselves about the nature of their relationship by saying it's for the plan. Like Durge is fully convinced that they're excited about this having their relationship in the open and getting married thing because it's a sign that the plan is advancing and they're getting access to more murder resources and not at all because of any feelings on their part nope not a bit. And gortash is basically doing the same thing, like ohhhh I'm so happy because this wedding will help cement my reign and not at all because I'm imagining seeing durge in the outfit I carefully designed for them and having them at my side always, nah, just the plan thing.

Sceleritas fel is constantly begging durge not to go through with it and even though he usually isn't visible to other people he makes himself visible to gortash just so he can give him the stinkeye. He also keeps trying to put blood and skeletons in their future shared quarters to improve "the silly little banite lordling's deficient interior decorating".

#au where the plan succeeds up until the ~defeat of the absolute~ and they actually do get married#(before durge meets the party and inevitably there is Redemption And Happy Endings For All because. please)

I now desperately want to see an au where everything goes according to plan and they get married and then the tadpole gang shows up. Maybe they spend all this time in the lower city hearing about it and need to sneak into the wedding in the upper city to meet the people they're up against? Oh that would be too much fun. It would be very fun to get to see both Durge and Gortash's public personas from the gang's perspective and maybe even a glance behind the curtain at their more tyrannical tendencies when we realize that their honeymoon is also cover for them to make contact with and start planning takeovers in other parts of the sword coast. Ooooo this would be so much fun (though I admit to being partial to the idea of durge and gortash enabling the worst parts of the gang from their position of power and dragging them to the darkside with them because I'm terrible and love angst and bad endings)

Consider: Gortash having a portrait of Durge somewhere where the party ends up seeing it, because he managed to coax, bribe or coerce them into sitting for it at some point and there's no point going to all that trouble and expense for a portrait if no one is ever going to see it and also he likes looking at it so sue him. It fulfills both my desire for the party to get a glimpse of pre-amnesia Durge that isn't just Evil Murdery Bhaalspawn and my desire for Gortash dragging Durge kicking and screaming into at least some parts of Respectable Noble Society!

[miraculouscontent]

Didn’t Need Burrow (May 30th-July 5th)

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Narrative basically ret-cons bad behavior of someone who isn't Marinette.

Oh yay! Alya V2!

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need Burrow to know that Mouse!Mylene will be called Multimouse.

I read somewhere that her name will be Polymouse but the source was broken.

Please be a mistake back when we saw the hero names and Mylene didn’t get her own name.

I’d also like to add a bonus that either Mylene gets named that without her consent (like someone calls her that), or Mylene names herself that without any knowledge of Multimouse!Marinette at all.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't need burrow: Assuming Luka×Zoe actually happens, there will be no build up whatsoever. In one episode, they just happen to get trapped together somewhere, talk for like ten seconds and start dating immediately afterwards. Basically the same as Alya×Nino bc none of the ships in this show (other than Lukanette and Adrigami) had any sort of meaningful developement before happening

A relationship beyond the love square getting development??? That’s cute.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't need burrow: Nino is gonna realize that Alya has the fox miraculous full time now and because of that he's gonna get pissy and so somehow Alya will be outta commission and Nino will be there so Marinette will give him a miraculous, Alya will probably say something encouraging about Nino, and then HE'LL get a full time miraculous to.

The only reason I don’t feel like this won’t happen is that it doesn’t direct anywhere near as much blame onto Marinette.

Anonymous asked:

Don't need burrow to know Chat will get angry at Ladybug and maybe Rena because Rena is now a permanent hero and he'll spend the day being a dick, but he'll be forced to work with Rena and realize things are good, but he'll only apologize to Rena.

Ladybug is just used to being chopped liver I assume.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Adrigami is restored, while Lukanette isn't.

Marinette will be too busy being forced by the narrative to continue caring about Adrien.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't need burrow, Su Han will only reappear at the end of the season and then disappear again.

“Hi, Su-Ha--oh, there he goes.”

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Adrien decide to confess his secret identity as Chat Noir to Nathalie. She decide to don't tell him that his father is Hawkmoth (but also decide to don't tell Gabriel that his son is Chat Noir)

God, the Agreste drama intensifies. Kill me.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Marinette actually REJECTS Adrien after the identity reveal after it hits her all at once that HE did all the awful, questionable things Chat Noir did. This allows the Love Square Drama to continue, with Marinette being slammed for DARING to be upset/have STANDARDS - everyone claims that she's set the bar too impossibly high and is responsible for her own romantic misery, while Adrien continues being coddled by other temporary love interests while waiting for her to wise up.

Uggggggh.

I’m just waiting for Ladybug to loudly reject Chat Noir and then she falls for him soon after and bonus if Chat rubs it in her face that she’s moved on or the narrative ignores Chat’s past actions as Ladybug is all like, “WOW HE’S SO RESPECTFUL NOW.”

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Ladybug's continued rejections of Chat Noir are directly compared to Gabriel's shitty parenting -- both of them are denying Adrien things he wants, and these crimes against Sadrien are depicted as equally awful.  (If not weighted towards Ladybug being worse because sHe'S bReAkInG hIs WiDdLe HeArT~~~)

This one wins for making me the most upset.

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t need burrow: Juleka will become the tiger hero in another Julerose-centric episode, but this time Rose is akumatized (into princess fragrance again, but this time with a sentimonster so it’s DiFfErEnT). It will chronologically take place after guilt trip, but Rose’s disability will not be acknowledged, even in passing.

I swear, if I have to see a repeat akuma ONE MORE TIME!!!

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t need burrow: The major conflict of the season will be Marinette repeating “mistakes” (this can be similar to not keeping chat 100% in the loop till he throws a fit or having a human to depend on emotionally about miraculous stuff) Bonus: The show doesn’t show the good that came out of her actions and only the bad (Not having a breakdown and etc)

Yup. Definitely Marinette’s fault that she needed to rely on someone so she didn’t have a breakdown. She should’ve buried her emotions and broke down every day instead.

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t Need Burrow: After the show runners give into another fan theory of new permanent heroes, they will quickly show why this was a mistake. Bonus if it’s the very next episode (because if Marinette did it then it has to be bad)

This already felt super likely and then you added “because if Marinette did it then it has to be bad” and now I’m just sad because it’s doubly right.

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t Need Burrow: Marinette, who dreams of being a fashion designer, designs something that’s just ugly. Bonus if it’s never addressed/characters just say it’s great so the show doesn’t look bad at designing clothes

Does Ladybug count? Still can’t believe Chat Noir gets the “complex” outfit with actual thought and Ladybug gets the onesie.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: It's revealed that Emilie intended to use the Miraculi they'd found to 'give Adrien the world'.  This is treated as a sympathetic motive because, as Word of God constantly insists, Adrien is perfect and deserves everything he desires, regardless of how anyone else feels about it.  Thus it doesn't matter what horrific things his parents did or intended; their goals are treated as righteous, with Ladybug being Wrong to oppose them.

They just want what’s best for their son!!

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: There will be a plot in which LADYBUG is accused of not caring about civilians, with Adrien/Chat Noir getting to lecture her as if HE has the moral high ground.  Or any ground to stand on.  His abysmal track record is completely ignored, retconned, or otherwise treated as inapplicable; we likely get a singular moment where he suddenly Gives A Shit about protecting one of his friends/classmates, which is treated as proof that he Always Cares About Such Matters.

Bonus if it’s Ladybug choosing not to defend/save someone who spited her/deserves it, which is “clearly worse” than Chat Noir threatening to let Paris drown in “Syren.” Ladybug is not allowed to be human and also not allowed to show people that there are consequences for their actions, proving that they/Chat can take advantage and mock her as much as they want with no repurcussions.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Sabrina and Chloe have another Friendship Breakup; when Sabrina seems poised to actually get away from her abusive 'BFF' for good, Adrien intervenes/whines at Marinette to help him fix it, because it's nOt FaAaAaIr for Chloe to be aLl AlOoOoOoNe...

Is it too late to make Adrien disappear and have it look like an accident.

Anonymous asked:

DNB: In a Shocking Twist, Cats are revealed to be cursed - the majority suffer some catastrophic fate as the Ring eventually causes their Destruction.  Only True Love can break it, making Ladybug's refusal to give in to Chat Noir's advances a literal matter of life-and-death and 'justifying' all of his behavior.  Bonus if it's retconned that *Adrien always knew this*, despite nothing in his behavior ever indicating he believed himself to be on borrowed time.  Because Angstrese.

Also bonus if this is also used as just another way to make him seem sympathetic. Double bonus if this information is brought up after Ladybug snaps at Chat Noir, and she’s told this information to make her feel guilty.

.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: If Adrien reveal someone his secret identity, it will be ... obviously Wayhem.

Nino: hello darkness--

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Goat!Marc, Rooster!Nathaniel and even Ox!Ivan will be buffed out because not even the boys in this show are allowed to keep their own body shapes when they become superheroes.

I’m positive Ivan especially will be beefed up. The civilian models are really awkward at times and clearly not prepared to be put in onesies (it’s hard to explain and maybe someone more experienced with propotions/anatomy will be able to say it better, but their limbs don’t have a lot of “shape” to them I guess?).

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t need burrow: Alya’s miraculous looks exactly the same in it’s “camouflage” mode solely so Lila can easily switch her necklace with Alya’s. (seriously why does it not change that bothers the hell out of me)

If that happens, I’d put money on Alya not getting called out on it. Good to know you put so much priority on “secrecy,” Alya.

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t need burrow: A kwami swap will happen again somehow. Marinette will uncharacteristically scold Adrien way more harshly than normal AGAIN to make him feel bad about himself and this will further the (Adrien melodrama depression arc) of him feeling useless/ replaced. Bonus points if Alya picks up his slack.

Honestly, I was here for the scolding in “Reflekdoll” just because there weren’t consequences for her for once.

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t Need Burrow: There will be Sad Noir galore. Its all Ladybug���s fault, naturally.

Naturally.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Episode where Sabrina gets Dog Miraculous will be Chloe-centric (or Bourgeois sisters centric)

&

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t Need Burrow: the episode where Sabrina gets the Dog Miraculous (which seems inevitable now, ugh) will heavily feature or even focus on Chloé, despite the fact that Chloé has already had a couple of episodes focusing largely on her this season. Sabrina’s introduction as a hero will have about as much focus as Kim’s or will be jammed into the last five minutes of the episode. Bonus points if they manage to deny her a proper transformation sequence like they did Kagami.

Roger: *exists and desperately needs development on his policy that caused Sabrina to become Chloe’s slave in the first place*

show: okay but--

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Under pressure, Marinette admits to Alya and/or Tikki that she doesn't mind the attention (aka constant harassment) Chat Noir gives her; parroting common claims by sexual harassers, she says it makes her feel *special* and *noticed*.  She may also insist that she still wishes he would focus on the AKUMA/their responsibilities more, but the obvious point of this scene is to 'justify' his behavior with evidence that 'she enjoys it'.

MARINETTE

PLEASE

YOU DESERVE SO MUCH BETTER

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: There will be a joke about Chat Noir *copping a feel* on Ladybug after an akuma sends them into an awkward position.  Ladybug's shock and discomfort is played for laughs; bonus if he quips about her suit not leaving much to the imagination.  Adrien is in a fantastic mood afterwards, considering that to be the 'best battle yet'.  (Alternatively, another heroine is victimized and Ladybug is visibly jealous/her annoyance at Chat is treated like jealousy.)

I’m not adding this to the spreadsheet just because a scene like that is too dicey for a kid’s show (though, believe me, if it were to happen, I’m putting that on it’s own damn card), but I will say that this would 100% happen if this were an anime/aimed towards an older audience.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien tricks Alya into thinking that Chat Noir already knows Ladybug's secret identity, thusly learning that she's Marinette.  This is passed off as all MARI's fault, naturally.  If Alya apologizes at all, it's in a backhanded, "But why didn't he know this already?" sort of fashion.

It’s Marinette’s fault for telling Alya her identity in the first place.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Post-Reveal, Marinette struggles to reconcile how her crush is also her abusive slacker 'partner'.  Adrien, by contrast, accepts her as Ladybug immediately... though his words make clear that he doesn't give a shit who SHE is, just that she's Ladybug.  Naturally, this is treated as Mari needing to learn how to accept Adrien for who he is, all while insisting that his many flaws and failings aren't issues at all.

i hate it, thanks

Anonymous asked:

DNB: The RLBS is EXPLICITLY punishment for Marinette: after a mutual reveal, Adrien declares that they can't get together as civilians until she accepts him as Chat Noir.  Mari is forced to awkwardly pursue Chat as Ladybug while he strings her along/humiliates her; meanwhile, Adrien trolls her with shallow gestures to fluster her/rile up their shipper classmates, who ride her ass for not 'sealing the deal' and making their relationship official.  Alya, aware of everything, is the WORST about it.

I presume that “RLBS” is “Reverse Love BS” which... yes.

Also, that whole “she needs to accept him as Chat Noir” infuriates me because that’s been a fandom thing forever.

.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: The only reason Sabrina got Dog Miraculous is because of a scene where Chloe literally "Kick the Dog".

&

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t Need Burrow to know that despite Sabrina almost certainly getting a miraculous and becoming a hero, the fact that she deserves better than being abused by Chloé and is a worthwhile individual in her own right will not be addressed. Because StATuS QuO!

I just had a horrible thought that they’ll do the episode like--

Chloe treats Sabrina terribly like usual, Sabrina ditches Chloe and Chloe is miserable + takes it out on everyone else for it, then Chloe gets akumatized over it and Sabrina gets the dog (for “loyalty”), which leads to Sabrina going back to Chloe so that Chloe will direct the abuse more solely towards Sabrina because “she takes it out on others otherwise”/she’s “used to it”/”it’s her responsibility and this is the right thing to do.” This will also be presented as the “right choice” and Chloe and Sabrina’s relationship will basically not change for the sake of leaving Chloe the way she is.

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t Need Burrow: Cat Noir is gonna throw a Syren-Sized fit if/when he finds out that Ladybug dares to have a support network through Alya (not a very GOOD support network, but one nonetheless).

Still waiting for the “lesson” where Ladybug is told she’s not allowed to have emotions/be vulnerable.

Oh wait, that’s the show.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't need Burrow: Adrien/Chat Noir will angst and fish for sympathy points instead of apologizing for the 40th time in the series.

Every time.

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t Need Burrow: Luka is gonna say that Adrien and Marinette are made for each other. This is the last appearance that he will make in the show (with exception to background/shipping fuel between him and somebody else w̶h̶o̶ ̶i̶s̶ ̶p̶r̶o̶b̶a̶b̶l̶y̶ ̶e̶i̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶Z̶o̶è̶ ̶o̶r̶ ̶K̶a̶g̶a̶m̶i̶).

Considering the ““““parellel”“““ episodes of “Truth” and “Lies,” I’m just ready for the same thing that happened with Kagami in “Mr. Pigeon 72.”

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Trixx plays pranks on Alya's family and is a little troll; he particularly loves teasing the twins, since any claims they might make about seeing a 'magical flying fox' will be passed  off as childish imaginings.  Alya blames Marinette for this more than she does Trixx.

Marineeeette, raise your “children” better!!

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Alya will wind up spilling Ladybug's secret identity to Nino because 'she needs to talk to SOMEONE about this!' (and Mari CLEARLY doesn't count for anything) and trusts her boyfriend.

I would also imagine Alya going on about Marinette’s secret to Nino without explicitly telling him.

Also, this will be an episode in this season because Alya couldn’t even keep it in for ONE SEASON (”Animan” all over again).

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Ladybug will be seriously injured during an akuma battle, with circumstances preventing them from winning the fight/repairing the damage with Miraculous Cure right away.  Adrien/Chat Noir attempts to exploit the situation to learn 'his lady's' secret identity.  The narrative REFUSES to call him out on this; it's entirely on Marinette to protect herself by hiding the truth despite her injuries.

Bonus because “Ladybug” seemed to imply that their almost invincible in their suits, though I imagine if they get hurt, it’ll be Chat Noir and used for angst (like in “Miraculer”).

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Marinette will combine Miraculi more often to cut down on having to track down others all the time and put them in danger.  (And also because the merch guys want more stuff to base toys off of.)  She gets condemned for being a 'glory hound' and 'taught' that she needs to rely upon others more often, no matter what sort of risks that might entail (she'll get blamed for that anyway) or how they might let her down (again, always her fault).

Marinette: *tries not to burden others and instead does what the narrative has convinced her of; bearing the world’s weight alone until she breaks*

show: gOd, mArIneTtE--

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Chat Noir's tendency to screw around, flirt, and not read or work with his allies at all gets Rena Rouge, Vesperia or one of the other heroes hurt.  Naturally, this is played for Sadrien above all else -- if Ladybug or anyone else DARES to show any anger towards him for it, it's depicted as completely unjustified and unfair.  Bonus if the injured party insists that it's okay.

They neeeed Chat Noir to lighten the mood! He’s worth the risk!

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: RLBS is kicked off by Marinette being utterly HUMILIATED by Adrien publicly rejecting her once he can't ignore her crush anymore, spurring her to give up on him 'for good'.  Adrien decides that he misses her chasing after him and starts pursuing her, with Alya and others encouraging her to accept his advances/telling her that she's crazy to reject him even after what he did.  Marinette's utter misery over the whole ordeal is treated as HILARIOUS.

It’s not like he mEaNt to embarrass you, Marinette!!!

Marinette didn’t meant to do a lot of things too but you don’t see the show giving her any slack.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien/Chat Noir starts treating Alya/Rena Rouge with exactly as much 'respect' as he gives Ladybug -- which is to say, nothing but lip service paired with stunts like refusing to help unless she spills Ladybug's secrets.  Alya naturally blames Marinette for this.

I’m torn on whether he’d “””respect her””” as much as Ladybug or give her even more respect, probably on the premise that “Ladybug chose her,” and that somehow proves that Chat Noir is a good guy in all this (while, again, disrespecting/not trusting Ladybug/making his own decisions at every corner).

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien/Chat Noir attempts to charm Alya/Rena Rouge into sharing Ladybug's secrets with him, possibly making Nino jealous in the process.

*sees “Rocketear” trailer*

oh no...

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: We get another 'Bad Future' episode centered on Sadrien; this time around, it features him losing the Ring, painting this popular plotline as a horrible idea because Adrien is Perfect and Never Does Anything Wrong, and should never be punished for his actions.  No matter how it happens, Marinette is blamed for it; bonus if somebody angrily tells her that SHE should have lost HER Miraculous instead.

Wouldn’t be surprised, but that would also mean making a new model of a cat hero.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: It's revealed that part of the reason Alix/Bunnix refuses to share any 'Spoilers' about how the future is 'meant to go' is because Marinette Suffers Incredibly in the process, and Alix knows that she'd try to find some other way... and assumes that she'd fail in the process.  This is treated as entirely valid and Marinette, if she learns that this is part why Bunnix won't tell her shit, has to accept that she's just doomed to be Fate's personal punching bag.  Sucks to be her!

It’s “meant to be.”

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Marinette/Ladybug is told outright that she's a horrible person for not respecting Chat Noir's feelings for her.  Bonus points if it's Alya, citing Mari's crush on Adrien as proof that she should know how it feels to constantly fail at getting your crush's attention.  (Alternately, Adrien venting to her about how *unfair* it is that Ladybug's so cruel to her partner, unaware of the dramatic irony.)  Triple-7 Jackpot of Shit if this contributes to the RLBS becoming a thing.

UGGGGGH.

And of course Chat Noir wouldn’t get the same treament and it’ll be like, “WELL ADRIEN DOESN’T kNoW sO--”

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Instead of Lila, Chloe is revealed to be the next holder of the Butterfly Miraculous. This shows Chloe as "irredeemable" while successfully writing Lila out of the show.

Meanwhile, the writers’ script is frantically scribbled on with red marker.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Reveal that post about Lila being future Hawkmoth was Red Herring (or in this case orange herring)

Dumb herring.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't need a burrow;

By the end of the series, Gabriel will have a redemption arc to feel sympathy for him :o

guys he’s so sad don’t you see--

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien's inability to choose between the 'love of his life' and the abusive shitbag excuse of a sire who'd just smacked him like a ping-pong ball foreshadows that he will ultimate choose Gabriel after learning that he's Hawk/Shadowmoth.  This will be entirely blamed on Marinette not being able to keep him by her side because 'she didn't love/cherish/appreciate him enough'!

After “Guiltrip” and the whole, “I don’t say this enough--” line, I’d buy it and now I’m sad.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: The RLBS is kicked off by Chat Noir switching sides and joining Hawk/Shadowmoth.  Ladybug is forced to appeal to Chat's 'love' for her, with Alya, Tikki, and various other 'friends'/allies blaming her for his defection.  Meanwhile, Sadrien starts pursuing Marinette as an outlet for his mangst, 'unintentionally' making her more miserably conflicted in the process.

She rejected him and therefore he’s in his right to switch sides. She never even gave him a chance!!!

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien is a Sentimonster/was created by other Miraculous magic by the Agrestes, who desired a 'perfect/model son'.  This is used to further the narrative that his entitlement is actually a Good Thing: Adrien was not MEANT to have any wants/needs/desires of his own, but mysteriously developed them anyway.  Thus Marinette NEEDS to cater to his every whim because it's sO mIrAcUlOuS that he HAS them in the first place.  Hooray...?

His very EXISTENCE is MIRACULOUS, Marinette!!!

Also, Astruc will act like this was amazingly foreshadowed in “Ladybug” where Ladybug comments on Sentibug’s perfection.and with Astruc always called Adrien perfect (either on his own or through other characters).

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Another Shocking Familial Connection is revealed: Felix is not Adrien's cousin, but Gabriel and Emilie's original son, whom they shunted off on her sister and replaced with the 'perfect' Adrien.  50-50 split on whether this is used to excuse all of Felix's shitty behavior or if he's demonized further -- 'See, THIS is why they replaced him!  ANYONE would choose the Perfect Adrien over someone like THAT!'

Why not both????

It’s like the Chloe-Zoe situation but male.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: After learning that Rena Rouge has become Ladybug's confidant, Chat Noir outright REFUSES to help at a critical moment, sneering about how 'you ladies CLEARLY don't need me'.  As with everything else, the blame for his latest stunt is laid neatly at Marinette's feet, because Adrien is never EVER responsible for his own actions.

They’ll probably blame Marinette because Ladybug “didn’t tell him right away.”

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Circumstances force Adrien to be Mr. Bug again (since they already have the models).  Much is milked from how HAAAAAAAARRRRD his temporary responsibilities are on him, and he reiterates afterwards how happy he is that he doesn't have to deal with that all the time.  No actual sympathy for Ladybug's situation is displayed, though stans treat it as such; what we're actually SHOWN is that Adrien only cares about the burden when HE'S the one stuck carrying it.

As per usual, no one cares about Marinette’s problems until it directly affects THEM, and then they’ll go back to not caring.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: With all of the other abusive behavior Adrien has shown towards Ladybug, it's only a matter of time before we get a 'Why did you make me hit you?' moment.  No akuma influence; just him physically lashing out at her because he's an entitled little shit upset over not getting his way, followed by the inevitable bleating about how bad HE feels and how he'll 'never do it again'.  Naturally, this is presented as though Marinette 'deserved it' and must accept his apology.

Show, don’t do this to me, I swear--

I’d be surprised if this did happen, but more because it’s like wow the lack of self-awareness is even worse than I thought.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: We get a Very Special Episode about sexual harassment... which not only refuses to acknowledge Adrien's behavior as such, but asserts that he would NEVER touch 'his lady' in any kind of inappropriate fashion.  Bonus: he harasses her in that very same episode to 'prove' that his behavior isn't inappropriate.

So “Felix” but worse...

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: The reason why ML Writers made Zoe an actress is to justify why she managed to recognize that Lila is "Liar that lies" instantly after meeting her.

Waiting for the moment where Zoe talks to Marinette to address Marinette “acting like she’s not in love with Adrien.”

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Lila steals the Fox Pendant from Alya/does something that affects her *personally*.  Alya then reads Marinette the riot act, demanding to know "Why didn't you WARN ME about her?!"  (None of the times that she DID count because Alya dismissed them as her 'just being jealous', which is, of course, entirely Mari's fault.)  Bonus if we allude back to her claiming that 'good reporters do their research' and how she expected MARI to provide her her with proof of her claims.

Marinette: *thousand yard stare*

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: When Lila is exposed, Marinette gets blamed for all the harm she caused with her various deceptions, since she tried to warn others and couldn't convince anyone of the truth.  Adrien 'taking the high road' is largely glossed over; if anyone finds out that HE knew too and never did anything to warn anyone, he's quickly forgiven for 'not knowing any better'.

See, Marinette, if you just hadn’t tRiEd--

And Adrien was just trying to “be nice to everyone equally” so he’s forgiven.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien/Chat Noir outright admits that he dislikes Rena/the other heroes being around since they make him feel unnecessary.  This is treated as a perfectly reasonable and valid complaint rather than a slacker piss-moaning about being shown up by others making actual EFFORT.

*flashbacks to “You’re not trying to replace me with a turtle, are you?” after Carapace shows up LITERALLY ONCE*

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: We get a retread of the NYC Special's Angstrian when he accidentally ('accidentally?') Cataclysms Rena/somebody else.  Bonus if the victim once again argues that THEIR experiences/trauma are FAR less important than his.  (Especially if it's Alya, Nino, Max... somebody who ALSO happens to be a character of color temporarily killed off to make the spoiled white rich brat feel sorry for himself.)

It’s an accident and also probably “Ladybug’s fault.”

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien/Chat Noir skips an akuma attack/shows up late to find it was resolved without him, and mopes about how 'his lady doesn't need him anymore', requiring somebody else to massage his ego.  Bonus points if somebody (likely Ladybug) is demonized for getting annoyed at him for being late/a no-show, because HOW DARE they take defending Paris seriously?!

Well excuse us, Chat, next time we’ll just awkwardly stall for twenty minutes.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Chat Noir will 'accidentally' Cataclysm one of the protective Charms so that its holder can be akumatized again.  Bonus if he does this to Alya/one of the other heroes.

Probably Chloe.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: The protective charms are ultimately rendered effectively pointless when Adrien switches sides and starts using his powers to destroy them.  Naturally, Marinette is held completely responsible for his actions, because God FORBID he ever be called to account for himself.  Not when his 'partner' is around to absorb all the blame.

You didn’t make him feel loVeD, Marinette.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien pulls a Chloe with his own attempt at engineered heroics, putting the lives of others on the line to 'prove his value'.  Ladybug is completely blamed for the stunt; bonus if someone accuses her of 'not learning anything' from what happened with Chloe.

Hate it. Hate it a lot.

We already got him trying to cause/hoping for akuma, so this isn’t too far off.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien gives Zoe better advice for dealing with her bullies.  His policy for handling Chloe and Lila remains the same as ever.  (In other words, only Marinette has to 'be the better person' and keep suffering at the hands of her abusers, since it maintains his preferred status quo.  But it's no skin off his nose if Zoe's situation changes/improves.)

I also imagine that Adrien would give this advice without Marinette onscreen, so Adrien won’t be called out on it.

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t Need Burrow: Alya will reveal Marinette’s identity to someone (possibly Nino) and the show will then punish Marinette for trusting Alya in the first place. Bonus point if the show then says she should have trusted Adrien/Chat Noir because he would never have betrayed her trust.

I’m just remembering the fandom’s complaints and wow I hate it.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Ladybug Miraculous basically change into Poor man's version of Green Lantern's Ring

*stares at the phone in “Optigami” that somehow picks up on the kwamis’ voices* hm

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t Need Burrow: Marinette will look through the future and see one where she and Luka get together, except it’s portrayed as bad and abusive, more so if he knows her secret identity, and the only way for her to escape it is by getting with Chat Noir(and not...you know, anybody else. Or being single. Or MAKING THE RELATIONSHIP WORK!!!). Chat Noir sees it too, and gloat about in her face, since it proved that they were “meant for each other, m’lady!” Bonus points if someone calls Thomas Ass Truck out on this shit, and he either replies that it was the best thing to do, claims it doesn’t matter how Lukanette is treated/the love square ends up together because they’re “made for each other” anyway, or even tries to pass it off as “girl power”, because how could we let the female lead get with the respe—oops, I mean abusive guy over the one who treats her te—oops, I mean respectfully and like a “gentleman” would?! And then he’ll follow up by blocking them for daring to question the Ridiculous Relationship Rhombus and respect the “non-endgame” ship. Even wor—oops! I mean, better, if love square shippers use this opportunity to gloat about how “I always knew Adrien and Marinette(notice how they always place his name first?!) were perfect for each other, Luka wasn’t good enough for Marinette, take that, Lukanette shippers!” declaring it “anti-salt”.

bfgkdjfgdfg god

Also, the only problem with this idea is that it would mean making an adult model for Luka.

Bonus if another “disadvantage” to Marinette dating Luka is that Luka isn’t high class.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Marinette will be told outright to 'Get over yourself' and stop bringing up valid complaints about Chat Noir's shitty behavior, as the series becomes increasingly overt with its subtext about how one of Marinette's Biggest Mistakes is having STANDARDS.

Ignoring that Luka exists, of course, and if it’s mentioned that Luka exists then cue, “OH BUT SHE DOESN’T AAAACTUALLY LOVE LUKA.”

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need Burrow: SentiWiFi (Lady WiFi Sentimonster)

SentiEveryone at this point...

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Nino is again robbed of screentime by Sentimonster based on him.

*sees “Sentibubbler” title and trailer*

Did--did you predict the future??

...I mean, we’ve been doing that the whole time, but damn.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Alya will continue shoving Marinette towards Adrien, then mockingly ask 'Didn't you want to give romance a break?' or something along those lines.  Showing that not only is she fully aware of Marinette's wishes and doesn't give a damn, but implicitly blaming Marinette for her inability to stick to them, despite how SHE is the one forcing the issue.

“We all know that you WANT HIM, Marinette! Stop denying yourself!!!”

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: When Marinette gets a spot of hope regarding her relationship woes, Alya leaps in to take all the credit for the apparent success.  Once the light turns out to be an incoming Drama Train that blindsides Marinette and leaves her humiliated and heartbroken, Alya insists that it's entirely MARI's fault that things went off the rails.

Waiting for a line from Alya about how she’s doing everything right and Marinette must be really hopeless if Alya’s schemes aren’t working...

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Alya and Nino will get into a bit of Relationship Drama in order to further reinforce the series' double standards.  (Such as 'It's OK for boys to lie, but girls shouldn't have any secrets.'  Or 'Boys can hold grudges, but girls must forgive every trespass.'  Or 'Girls shouldn't told boys to impossible standards like expecting to be treated with basic human decency.')  Bonus points if Marinette gets blamed for it.

Yup.

Yup.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: The subtext about Marinette not deserving a GOOD love interest is further emphasized by Kagami and Luka getting together.  Kagami comments on how she can trust Luka not to lie to her; this is the closest she gets to explaining to Marinette WHY she broke things off with Adrien in the first place.  After all, it doesn't matter if Adrien lies to Marinette; they're 'meant for each other'.

I’m still not over Kagami saying that the guy who lied to her is “made for” her only friend????

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Zoe learns a valuable lesson about the importance of Being Herself with Luka's help, teasing the idea of the two of them getting together.

“Bonus” for Marinette saying that Zoe and Luka are made for each other.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Chat Noir deliberately strings Vesperia along in a ploy to make Ladybug jealous.  Zoe is naturally heartbroken when she learns the truth.  Her pain is blamed entirely on Marinette, since Adrien can NEVER be held accountable for his own actions.

Ladybug, you should’ve seen this coming!!

Anonymous asked:

Didn't need burrow (kinda?), Astruc apparently is aware that his perfect Adrien is flawed as Chat Noir (he said so on twitter), and I fear that if anyone ever asks him why the two sides of Adrien so different, he'll reveal that the cat miraculous changes the holder's personality or some shit, which will cause "Anti Adrien Salt" to explode, screaming "the salter's claims aren't valid anymore, it's not Adrien's fault, it's the miraculous!!!1!!111!!!!¡¡!¡¡¡!!!"

I feel like he denied that back when he still had a Tumblr but gosh I’m just waiting for it to be confirmed because FANON THEORIES.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien gets a taste of what Marinette goes through constantly when he/Chat Noir suffers a bit of minor humiliation over his crush.  His pain and angst over this is played DEAD SERIOUS, treated as though he's suffering through the WORST THING EVER even though whatever happened pales in comparison to what Marinette has endured.  Anyone who dares so much as chuckle at what happened is villainized, since only a MONSTER would find his suffering funny.

I’m seething.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Return of Sentibug (for fanservice)

Bonus if they kill her off again. Something something “only one Ladybug” something.

neyla9 asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: So if Zoe gets sent to a new boarding school after being in Paris for a few months (there is a chance the writers will just completely ignore that this was established in Sole Crusher, in which case this probably won't happen), I predict that Zoe was brought in specifically to redeem Chloe, rubbing it in Marinette's face that she failed at redeeming Chloe, and force Marinette to give Chloe the bee miraculous back

Most likely. Apparently needed to bring someone else in to make Marinette feel worse.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien abandons/ditches his responsibilities as a hero because he's too busy sulking over his ego being bruised by some slight (real or imagined).  Marinette is naturally blamed for this.

Oh, of course!

Marinette probably had to be late for patrol so he was intentionally late for something, and then was like well you did it to me, so--

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Chloe will get another tiresome 'Will she or won't she be redeemed?' arc, only to backstab/betray everyone again.  Astruc will preen and croon on social media about how gullible anyone that thinks she could ever be redeemable is.  Bonus points if Chloe's damning act that proves she's unsalvageable is something ADRIEN has done.

Meanwhile, Nino is back here absolutely collecting DUST!!!

I guess you gotta be a horrible person/make Marinette suffer to get screen time.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Chloe will discover Vesperia's secret identity and steal the Bee Miraculous, then spitefully out Zoe so that SHE can't be a heroine anymore.

Marinette is running out of teens at this point but finding new ones would mean more models.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Zoe is used to teach Marinette that she's too harsh on others for lying, and should accept that they can be dishonest sometimes.  (Especially Adrien.)  As a natural follow-up, Marinette is blamed/punished for falling for a friend's lies -- because CLEARLY it's not Alya/Adrien/anyone else's fault if she believes their bullshit!

No one’s perfect, Marinette! People are human!!

...Except you, of course.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Despite the incident with SentiNino, Shadow Moth will *successfully* obtain a miraculous by using the same trick.  Bonus points if it's Marinette/Ladybug who falls for it... though really, she'll be blamed regardless.

Double bonus if she doesn’t fall for it but it still goes through.

Anonymous asked:

DNB: The 'Shocking Twist' of Adrien/Chat Noir betraying Team Miraculous and joining his father will be presented as though it's entirely Marinette/Ladybug's fault, with Adrien acting as though he Had No Choice and angsting about being 'forced' to betray his lady and friends.  The series never acknowledges how self-serving his motives actually are, and any call-outs he gets are treated as Wrong and Awful and Blaming Poor Innocent Victim Adrien.

“hE’s jUsT tRyinG tO sAvE hIs mOm”

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: 'Borrowing' from many a Salt Fic, Marinette will thank her for 'proving who my *real* friends are'.  This entails giving Adrien, Alya and possibly others credit for always standing by her, believing in her, and various other things that they never actually did.

I’m presuming “her” means “everyone”/”the girl squad” and yup.

Better tell than show I guess.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Alya will be retconned into having 'never believed anything Lila said'.  Or at least, she will CLAIM that she never believed her.

I WILL BE SO UPSET

Also prepared for them to handwave it, like, “oh whatever, now I’m helping you since I know so it’s all good!”

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need Burrow: Similarities between Luka and Zoe were only red herring. Zoe will become Kagami's new love interest (and Kagami and Zoe's dynamic will be suspiciously similar do Fanon!Marigami)

But that would imply they care enough about LGBT rep.

Though they could always pull a Voltron and slip it in at the very end.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Marinette will suffer the toll/backlash from using multiple Miraculi ONLY for the sake of making that her Latest Mistake. Her past successes are only acknowledged as a way of painting her as arrogant for assuming she could continue doing so safely.

She’ll probably be yelled at and told not to “keep doing everything herself” even though that’s what the narrative keeps telling her to do.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Adrien discovers his father's secret identity and hides it... and this is painted as an act of incredible self-sacrifice rather than selfishness.  Rather than treating it as a betrayal of Ladybug/Team Miraculous, the series focuses on his angst and 'inner struggle', pretending there's something heroic about him refusing to expose Hawkmoth and potentially put an end to his terrorizing Paris.

:|

Deep breaths, Clarity.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't need burrow: Alya will get to keep her boyfriend despite her being involved with the miraculous box n stuff, unlike Marinette. Why, you ask? Easy, the bond between Luka and Mari just isn't sTrOnG eNoUgH for them to last through difficult times, like Alya and Nino do so easily.

Ignoring that Marinette and Luka only just got together and also that Marinette has it WAY different than Alya.

But no I guess. Adrien and Marinette are “made for each other” so gotta discredit Lukanette whenever. Marinette isn’t allowed to be happy, we know.

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t Need Burrow: The one time Marinette gets a break from akumas and her responsibilities all hell breaks loose and the lesson for that episode will be that Marinette and Marinette alone must carry the burden of being Ladybug and Guardian.

Marinette: *gets five minutes of sleep*

Paris: *catches on fire*

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow (Can I do two at once?): "Crocoduel" will not acknowledge the Lukanette breakup at all, and the titular Akuma will just be Guitar Villain and Captain Hardrock again.

(You’re allowed two, absolutely!)

I’d like to add as well that, even if they do acknowledge the Lukanette breakup, Marinette will talk to Luka about it but then be like, “I’m not focusing on love right now and I’m too busy so I’m sorry for everything that happened,” even as everyone keeps pushing for the love square.

[queenofbaws]

"how long are you staying?" / "for as long as you need me." for our favorite dragon age duo! (i'm prepared this time)

(not quite) six sentence weekend - just FYI, this is post “all that remains,” SOOOOOO...tw: death/death of family member(s)

There’d been a moment in the foyer where she’d known he was gearing himself up to ask the inevitable. Call it habit, call it intuition, call it the last nasty knock she’d taken to her head while wading through Quentin’s abominations unlocking some sort of latent telepathic ability within her mind, but she’d almost been able to see the words swirling around behind his eyes, ordering themselves in just the right way before being sent to his mouth. ‘Why don’t you come on down to the Hanged Man?’ he’d ask, making it sound like an afterthought, ‘How about we get you out of this place for a night?’

She’d grit her jaw and waited for it; she’d run through the laundry list of excuses in her head, trying to remember which she hadn’t used recently.

Only…Varric hadn’t asked. He hadn’t even come close. He’d just sauntered in like normal and made himself at home, and that moment, the one Hawke had been dreading, simply never happened.

Oddly enough, that almost made her more anxious. It suggested something else was coming.

It wasn’t dread, exactly, but…apprehension. Maybe. Yeah, sure, fine, that was a perfectly usable word for the knot sitting low and heavy in her gut, roiling like a pit of worms after a heavy rain: Apprehension. The promise that something was on its way, that the quiet of the manor was only a temporary thing meant to fill the air between them until it couldn’t be ignored any longer.

Which was sort of a problem, considering how shit she was with things like silence and anxiety and uncertainty. …and how very, very skilled she was with outright conflict.

“Really wish you’d just say what you came here to say, y’know.” The sound of her own voice genuinely made her want to wince, one too many nights spent screaming into pillows having taken their toll, but for his part, Varric seemed wholly unaffected by its creaks and cracks. In fact, had she not been able to hear herself, had she only had his reaction to work off of, she might’ve thought she’d said it with all her usual slick snark. “Short of ‘Knight-Commander Stannard and I have decided to wed in the spring and we were hoping you’d officiate,’ I suppose I can’t think of much I wouldn’t be able to handle hearing.”

A lie, obviously—there were a great many topics she knew for a fact would crack her down the center like a dropped egg—but she figured if she kept her eyes cast towards the fireplace, if she kept her hands occupied scratching Dog’s ears, if she let her mouth run and run and run as was its wont, maybe she could at least pretend it was the truth. As though sensing he were suddenly cast in some scheme he wanted no part of, Dog promptly lowered his head onto his paws and out of her reach. She looked away from the fire just long enough to see his big, brown eyes blinking up at her, and as though the two of them had planned it all out behind her back, of course that was when Varric spoke.

“Winter.” When she didn’t respond straightaway, he finally looked up from the mess of her writing desk and shot her one of his usual smirks. “It’s a winter wedding. Meredith hates spring.” He turned back to the table, returning to sorting the million or so letters that had arrived over the past week (a task he’d set about on his own volition, having been neither asked nor told), frowning at one before balling it up in his hands and lobbing it into the fireplace. “She says it’s allergies, but I know better—woman couldn’t pull off a pastel if her life depended on it.”

She stared at the back of his head until he pretended to notice her silence again. “I’m being serious.”

“Hey, so am I!” After setting another letter down into one of three slowly growing piles, Varric held both hands palms-up in a show of honesty she might’ve believed, had she only met him thirty seconds before. “Look, I know we’re usually on the same wavelength and all that, Hawke, but I don’t know what to tell you—I’m not waiting to say anything. So.”

“Didn’t come to ask me to the Hanged Man, huh?” The knot in her stomach didn’t melt away entirely now that she’d said it aloud (that would’ve been much too easy, after all), and yet it didn’t weigh quite so heavy anymore. Even so the urge to cringe away from her own voice reared its ugly head; she hadn’t meant to snap like that, to lay it out as an accusation.

An accusation met with nothing more than a shrug. “Nah. I might be an idiot, but I’m not stupid,” he snickered. “Kinda got the feeling last time I should drop that. That you’d come around when you felt like it.” Another few letters were sorted with that inscrutable system of his before he added, “Why, did you want me to ask?”

Something about her silence felt juvenile. A part of her, the part she’d been fighting to tamp down since Father had passed, ached to lash out, to spew out some maudlin rant about how she can’t handle the others and the looks they gave her. She wanted to stomp her foot and pout, hands balled to fists at her sides as she rambled about the unfairness of it all, the way even her closest friends were now watching her from the corners of their eyes as though expecting her to collapse at any given moment, the way people went quiet around her instead of jeering or wolf-whistling through guffaws. She’d become a charity case overnight, a tragedy, and if there was one thing her life had shown her it was that people, no matter how well-meaning, had no idea how to touch a fucking tragedy.

“No,” she said after a time, grinding her bootheel down twice as hard on that internal sense of self-pity and its simpering voice. “No, I didn’t.”

“Well…there you go, then! Problem solved.”

But it wasn’t. It wasn’t solved at all, because if he hadn’t come there to ask about the Hanged Man, then…then there was something else she was missing. There had to be.

“Was it Aveline?”

“Was it…what?” He’d made a good go of it, but Varric finally gave up on sorting her mail then, angling himself in his chair to fix her with a look just a little too confused to be anything but genuine. “The hell’s Aveline got to do with anything?”

A flicker of doubt crossed her mind at the look on his face, but she was already in too deep. “She sent you to make sure I wasn’t making a mess of the place? Tearing the drapery asunder? Given the caliber of my neighbors, I suppose it wouldn’t be out of the question that one of them filed a noise complaint and our dear friend the Captain of the Guard thought it would be best to—”

Across the way, Varric blinked. That damned expression of his remained, eyes narrowed and head tilted slightly to the side, like she was a peculiar new species of bug he’d never seen before and was simply trying to make sense of. “You think I’m here,” he started slowly, “Because the Guard…received a noise complaint.”

“Okay, fine, maybe…maybe it was Anders, then!” Hawke threw her hands into the air before letting them drop to her sides, turning away from him and towards the grate again, allowing herself to buy into the lie that it was the fire and not her blooming humiliation heating her face. “Needed someone to make sure I’m not picking at my stitches, or—”

Her voice trailed off as a distinct sensation came over her. They’d spent enough time together, the two of them, since her arrival in Kirkwall Maker-knew-how-long ago that she didn’t even need to look at him to know what she’d see: There was a quality about the silence that told her in no uncertain terms he’d be sitting there with his head propped up on a hand, watching her with the same sort of poorly concealed amusement of a passerby watching an especially impassioned drunkard shouting outside the Chantry yard that Andraste had been a dwarf all along, and the proof was there, if only you knew where to look.

A wiser person—a less stubborn person—probably would’ve dropped the whole thing right then and there. What she actually did was double down. “Sebastian, then.”

“Sebastian.”

“It’s been at least three days since he’s told me he’s praying for me.”

“Oh, so he conscripted me to pass that message along, did he?” It was the laughter in his voice that she couldn’t make sense of, the normalcy of it all. He was acting like this was any other day, any other visit, like he wasn’t here because of some sense of obligation or pity, to handle her with kid-gloves until he figured out the precise state of her brokenness.

With how the others had treated her since the Foundry, it just…it didn’t make sense.

The better part of a minute passed that way, only the sound of the fire crackling between them. Then his chair creaked as he got up. It seemed like only a second later that the familiar weight and warmth of his hand found the small of her back, his fingers tapping out a thoughtful rhythm until he ordered his words the way he wanted. “You wanna know why I’m here?”

“Pretty sure that’s how I started this conversation.” Then, just because the witty retorts had by then become second nature and she couldn’t stop them if she tried, “Do wish you’d actually listen to me when I spoke…”

He hummed at that, taking another moment to think. “I’m here,” Varric continued, again speaking in that slow, deliberate way that seemed to suggest he was piecing it together in much the same way she was, “Because I wish someone had been with me after what happened to my mother.”

The knot loosened, slackened, disappeared, taking with it all the tension in her body. She was left to slump, to flop like a ragdoll, suddenly feeling that her shoulders were too heavy to keep up, her jaw too heavy to clench. There it was, the thing that had been looming all along, the deep, dark shadow she’d been so worried about; there it was, in all of its awful, inescapable reality; there it was, out in the open. A relief and an agony in one.

She didn’t—couldn’t—say anything, instead folding her arms tightly across her chest as she stared that much more resolutely into the fire, sucking a corner of her lip between her teeth in a last desperate attempt to keep it from wobbling.

“But also,” he soldiered on, his thumb a slow metronome keeping time against her back, “Because I remember not wanting to see anyone, or deal with their bullshit, and how quick those two…incredibly different thoughts can drive you out of your mind, so. So! I figured you got yourself a big, fancy mansion here with a lot of big, fancy rooms…why not come mooch off your hospitality for a while? Change of scenery for me, company for you—if you want it…”

She was doing a piss-poor job of keeping that lip from wobbling. The first time she tried to answer, nothing came out of her throat, so she just nodded slightly, shoulders shrugging reflexively. “You know Corff will go mad, don’t you?” she managed to get out, clearing her throat futilely against the waver building there. “Even a day with you gone and he’ll be buried up to his eyeballs in…in Merchants’ Guild communiques and desperate pleas to take on jobs and people shouting about protection rackets. He’ll tear his hair out.”

“Eh, I’m not too worried about that.”

“Oh no?” She wiped her nose with the back of her hand instead of sniffling, knowing the moment—the very instant—she acknowledged she was on the verge of losing her shit, it would all be over.

“Nah,” he said again. “You know me, Hawke, I like to plan shit ahead. Let’s just say I left a forwarding address.”

It was only then that it occurred to her how strange it was, that sudden influx of mail she’d been receiving. In her tired mind, she’d figured it had been more dreck from the Guard, from the Circle, from the Knight-Commander herself, a million different people asking her a million different things about what, and who, and where, and how, and when everything had happened at the Foundry (never why, though, the only person who’d ever seemed interested in why had been Gamlen, and even then she hadn’t been able to scrounge up nerve enough to tell him). It never occurred to her that it hadn’t been meant for her at all.

That surprise more than anything else was what got her to tear her eyes away from the fire. She looked to the desk, piled high with messages, to Dog, who still somehow seemed guiltily aware of this whole scheme from the start, and finally to Varric, who clearly remembered even more about how he’d felt back then than he was letting on as he kept his own gaze on the grate to let her brush away her welling tears.

“How…how long can you stay?” Hawke asked amid that first traitorous sniffle, her grip growing tighter and tighter on her own arms if only to will away the trembling.

“Long as you need me!” And unless she was imagining things, she thought she detected a vein of emotion as deep as hers lingering just beneath the surface of his voice that time around. “Be that a day, a week, a—”

“Is, um,” she tried to clear her throat again but it backfired, coming out more like a soft sob, “Is forever on the table?”

His hand had been on her back before, but then his arm slid around her waist in a knowing squeeze. He seemed ready to support every ounce of her weight, if that’s what it took. “Y’know, for you, Hawke? I think forever could work.”

[karikarasuno]

The Sun Doesn’t Shine in Tokyo, Part II

Pairing: Tanaka Ryunosuke x Fem!Reader

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Angst, Character Death(s), Violence, Graphic Descriptions of Injuries, Mentions of Blood, Grief, Smut, Soft Sex, Vague knowledge of Computer Engineering (once again, please bear with me)

Summary: The end is near. Time is quickly running out. Hope is fleeting, but not entirely gone.

Part I | Part II

Word Count: 9.8k

June 17, 2065

8:24am

It’s morning. The digital clock on his bedside table flashed 8:24am, the angular digits barely seen through the grogginess of your sleepy brain. You shift to go back to sleep, which easily draws you in until there’s a stinging burn on your side. Your wound is itchy and uncomfortable.

“Shh,” fingers are brushing the hair on your forehead from your eyes. “Just gimme a second. This is gonna hurt.”

A wet cloth is pressed to the wound, the stinging sensation returning as you feel the alcohol clean out the dirt and grime from the night before. You squeeze your eyes shut and bite your lip to deal with the temporary pain. “I’m sorry, a little longer then I’ll be done.”

The cloth is removed as you sit up to rest on the headboard, too awake after the cold stinging to go back to bed. A calloused hand comes to stroke your cheek, chapped lips pressing a tender kiss to your temple. “Morning,” you croak, voice rough with sleep.

“G’morning, baby,” you can tell he’s been up for a while, the hoarseness that usually cracks his voice almost entirely gone.

“I should probably shower and then head downstairs. I never actually got the chance to brief everyone on what happened.”

“Don’t worry about it. Yamaguchi already did late last night. So just shower and meet me in the conference room for breakfast,” Tanaka explains before he pushes off his side of the bed, fully dressed as he places clean clothes for you on his dresser. Yachi probably gave them to him this morning and you remember you have to apologize to her today since you most likely sent her into cardiac arrest last night.

Lethargy and anticipation dictate the way you go about your morning, hardly remembering how you ended up sitting between Tanaka and Yamaguchi at the first officer strategy meeting of the day, showered and your gash freshly wrapped. Suga and Daichi are running it, images of the city’s infrastructure holographically displayed above the switchboard. The 3D landscape spinning and flickering as they outline different plans for tonight.

You didn’t realize your leg was bouncing beneath the table until Tanaka’s hand spread out on your thigh to stop it. “You listening?” He questions staring at you intently. Your thoughts have honestly traveled elsewhere, so you shake your head no.

“Do you have the tracking device?” Daichi repeats.

“Oh, no I don’t,” you lean forward and adjust your posture. “I slipped it into Oikawa’s pocket before he lost his shit, but I’m not sure if it survived the crash,” you explain, recalling the exact moment when he was gripping your chin, the distraction of your dagger on his sternum giving you enough time to plant it on him.

“We’ll have to ask Kenma then, maybe he can still locate it. And if that’s the case we’ll be able to see where he is, what he’s up to.”

The meeting continues, your attention drifting in and out trying to formulate a solid plan of your own. Something to ensure that everyone makes it out alive. After your encounter with Iwaizumi you were especially concerned about fighting an army of volunteers. Not that you weren’t confident in the people here, but you managed to plunge your dagger into one of his arteries and he still got up at Oikawa’s demand.

“The tunnels are a no go,” Yamaguchi says at some point when they began deciding on entry routes. “The grenade I threw blocked the only entrance we had into the basement.” You nod in confirmation as you remember the chunks of rubble and debris that were now closing in the stairs.

“The main entrance is our best shot. It’s bold and what they’ll least be expecting. There’s also a chance we could disarm the alarm system if we can break through the firewall. We have the manpower, the only unknown are the volunteers and what they’re fully capable of,” you add on, the floorplan of the estate replacing the flickering city. You stand to describe the various points of entry and what you assume would be the places they are most likely going to have guards stand outside.

“You should have the long range fighters stationed here,” your finger hovers over a patch of tall trees near one of the side doors. “And here,” you shift to point out an area near the front that is also beneath the shadows of the woods.

“Those specialized in hand to hand combat should form the frontlines, while everyone else flanks out in a diamond formation. Yachi in the middle with y/n and Yamaguchi,” Suga suggests while he visually demonstrates the formation on one of the large screens. “Since Yachi doesn’t have much combat experience Tanaka and Terushima will go with them,” he tacks on, giving Tanaka a pointed look.

“And obviously because the two of you are practically useless with your injuries,” Suga teases before he proceeds to assign and explain other roles. The rest of the meeting moves forward without a hitch and everyone agrees on the plan that factored in as many uncertainties as possible. The chairs scrape against the floor as the officers shuffle out to start preparing for tonight.

You stand with Tanaka’s hand in yours and start to make your way through the first floor before you stop in front of one of the only staircases in the building. “I’m actually gonna go visit Kenma,” you explain as Tanaka looks at you silently confused.

“I wanted to ask him a few questions before tonight,” you add as you slip your hand from his and he gives you a solid shrug.

“Alright, I’ll be in the vault, checking the inventory,” he grins, his hands circling your waist to pull you into his sturdy frame. “Maybe I’ll be able to find you a better weapon,” he bends to toy with the dagger on your thigh that you refused to travel without after last night.

“Better?!,” you feign offense. “You don’t think my dagger makes me look sexy?” You grin cheekily at him as his own teasing smile spreads across his face.

“Oh, I always think you look sexy. But you know what would make you look even sexier,” he leans down so that he’s staring directly into your eyes, voice dipping low. “Protection,” his eyes glint with mischief and a knowing smirk settles on his lips.

You shove him lightly and playfully smack the side of his head, his beanie shifting sideways. “Haha so funny,” you roll your eyes as your smile brightens. “Gimme some options and we’ll see.”

“That’s what I like to hear,” he responds when you turn around to walk away, his palm smacking your ass as you bound up the steps. “Payback for the beanie,” his hands rise in defense before he winks at you and turns to keep walking down the hall.

You take the steps two at a time like you usually do, except now you have your healing gash as a reminder to slow down. Unlike the other floors in the building the second level is a single large room coined the “Zone” by many of the guys. One half hosts Kuroo’s test lab, usually unkempt with sulfur and boiling chemical concoctions covering the surfaces. The other half belongs to Kenma with his various half built devices stuck between keyboards and multicolored wires.

While Kuroo often ventures out into the other rooms of the hideout to seek socialization, you can always find Kenma sitting exactly where he is now. Headset nestled over his ears, hair pulled back in a messy bun with his controller tight in his hands.

You walk up behind him and pull one of the cuffs from his ear. “Hey loser,” you release the set from your grasp so it snaps back on to his head, this time all lopsided.

“Not a loser,” he responds as he shakes his head so that the headphones fall back around his neck. His screens flashing a bold ‘victory’ to affirm that he is, in fact, not a loser.

“You are the only person I know who can play video games the day our world might end,” you say with a laugh when he shoots you an apathetic stare.

The relationship between you and Kenma developed rather naturally, a sibling connection unfolding before either of you realized. On your many sleepless nights wandering and exploring the compound you often found yourself here. At first, you stumbled upon him accidentally in the middle of the night, while everyone else was either asleep or working on their own projects to prepare for the upcoming conflicts. He awkwardly invited you to sit with him as he played or tinkered with new or semi thought out inventions. You really only watched at first, curiosity overcoming your intentions to not disturb him, but you soon found yourself asking questions. The questions turning into overnighters where he would teach you how to play his favorite games or help him code software he would embed in his tiny devices.

He puts his remote down and swivels in his chair to face you. “I was brainstorming,” the corner of his lips quirk up a little as he gets up and bumps your shoulder with his to step around you.

“Brainstorming what exactly?” You ask, your eyes following his thin frame as he walks to his crafts table and picks up a few things. He tilts his head to signal for you to walk over to him. “I’ll show you.”

You move to stand beside him and he hands off the small devices to you. You inspect them and realize they are watches, complete with a touch screen center and small dials on each side.

“These are reinforcement devices,” he says. “I don’t have enough for everyone but you clasp them around your wrist and twist the dials. A shield will manifest from here,” he points to the watch’s face, and what you incorrectly assumed was a touch screen surface is actually a reflection of the software’s veil.

“This is actually the code you helped me develop a few weeks back.” You smile up at him fondly, remembering the argument you got into after he refused to explain what it was for.

“How many do you have?”

“Six are complete,” he answers. “But I also have this.” He grabs a larger cylindrical device from a shelf attached to the wall.

“This is essentially a bigger version of those. The shield covers way more surface area. You can stick it to a wall or door, enter the pin and the shield will reinforce the structure to protect whatever’s inside,” he finished explaining before he places it back on the shelf.

“When did you have time to do all of this?” His production rate when it comes to his inventions is impressive to say the least.

He takes some of the reinforcement devices from you to organize them beside the others. “You know I hardly sleep,” he shrugs as if his lack of rest doesn’t bother you.

You open your mouth to voice this for the millionth time, but he lifts his finger to shush you. “Don’t. I get it,” he interrupts.

“Fine. But this doesn’t explain why you were brainstorming,” you say instead of nagging him about his awful sleep schedule, not that yours was really any better.

“Right,” he slides you over by your shoulders to switch spots. “This is for you,” he opens the locker in the corner of the room to pull something out. It’s another round device about two inches thick with small legs to hold it up.

“What’s this?” Your intrigue successfully piqued.

“Just watch,” he walks to Kuroo’s lab table and pushes some stuff around to clear a spot.

“I’ve been working on this for a while now,” he grabs his phone from his back pocket and punches in his password and then opens an app. The device begins to illuminate as streaks of ultraviolet waves burst through the top. “It’s a simulation machine that kinda works. I can’t seem to get the graphics right for some reason, hence the gaming,” he explains.

“So you’re saying you wouldn’t have been playing regardless,” you say, which earns you an eye roll from him and a chuckle from you.

“Pay attention,” he points to the device, redirecting your attention instead of answering you. There’s a distinct humming noise before the room’s image starts to ripple. A pixelated version of a beach envelopes the room warping and disguising the furniture.

“It’s not perfect, but it’s an illusion that can trick enemies into believing they are somewhere else,” he whispers, looking a bit sheepish. “I’ve only been able to generate this stock photo, but eventually I want it to replicate different rooms or even scenery we haven’t experienced in a while.”

“Kenma,” your voice is wistful as you absorb the sway of the palm trees, the gentle rolling of the waves lapping the shores. “This is amazing. H-how did you do this?”

“I had Yachi’s help. She came up one night freaking about the control center’s algorithm and asked if I could help since you and Yamaguchi were already asleep. We ended up talking about sunsets, mainly her rambling,” he lightly snorts. “So I showed her some games with high resolution graphics that had some pretty cool sunsets and she came up with this. She coded it really quickly while I built it. I just haven’t been able to fix the kinks.”

You were near tears. The words escaped you, but mostly because you could never describe what you were feeling out loud. The snapshot of a panicking Yachi running to Kenma makes you laugh because there is no way he calmed her down without having a silent stroke of his own.

“And this is for me?” You ask for clarification before the tears really start falling.

“Yeah,” he raises his hand to rub at the back of his neck. “Other than computer engineering, you are really the only thing we have in common.”

“Kenma, I-,”

“Woah!” You both turn to what used to be the floor’s entrance, which is now limitless sand. “The beach! This is so cool!” Hinata squeals, his eyes lighting up with wonder and amazement.

“Oh hey, Shoyo,” Kenma fumbles with his phone to turn off the display.

“What’s up?” You’re grateful for his interruption, afraid you were about to become a sobbing mess in front of Kenma, which he would not have appreciated.

“Tanaka asked me to come get you,” his smile is wide and enthusiastic. “Said something about your options being ready.”

“Of course he actually went through with it,” you shake your head not the slightest bit surprised.

“Also said if you don’t hurry he’s not afraid to kick some ass,” Hinata adds on, his smile turning impishly cheeky.

“Of course he did,” you laugh before turning back to Kenma, who’s a subtle shade of red.

“We aren’t done here,” you tell him, knowing how flushed he gets when he’s alone with Hinata and you walk away from him backwards until you’re standing behind your new guest. “Watch him, he’s known to cause trouble,” you whisper to Hinata but it’s still loud enough from him to hear you.

“Oh, I know,” he plays along, only for Kenma’s neck to burn a brilliant red as Hinata steps further into the Zone. You make kissy faces behind his back to tease him as much as possible before you run down the stairs, narrowly missing the object he threw at you.

June 17, 2065

4:57pm

The gun is spinning on the turntable in front of you. The gun you and Tanaka compromised on. It’s a small black pistol, the deep metal drinking in the harsh light from the screens lining the walls as it spins and spins. In the center of the room, Yachi is typing vigorously, the reversal code practically finished, but she tended to be a perfectionist, so you sit beside her waiting for it to be done.

“I can help,” you offer, hoping she will let you this time. She just glances at you, a flick of anxiety flashing in her gaze before she shakes her head no.

“Why not?”

“It’s already done,” she responds, fingers still tapping on the keys. “I just have to double check if everything is in order.”

“Well, what is it?” You’ve been begging for her to share the code with you, trying to convince her that it would be smarter if more than one person had it, especially if she’s not able to reach the control center in time.

“Not telling you,” her hair falls to cover her face as she looks down at her stilled hands. “It has to be me. I just need for you to get me there.”

“Yachi, c’mon, at least tell Yams,” you argue, not understanding why she won’t share the information with anyone.

“S-sorry,” is all she says in response, and you let out an agitated sigh because you won’t win this argument. “What’s with the gun?” She motions towards it with her hand as she leans back in her chair, avoiding the initial topic.

“Tanaka doesn’t believe my dagger is enough protection,” you look back down at the spinning gun and your chest tightens at the mere idea of having to use it. “It was this or a fucking katana.”

She laughs, the abruptness startling you, but she doubles over and wheezes. A blush is blooming on her cheeks at the lack of oxygen going to her lungs, her laugh turning into hiccups and breathless gasps. It’s contagious, your own laugh soon wracking through you.

“I don’t get it,” you say through snorts. “What’s so funny?”

“I cannot imagine you wielding a katana,” tears of laughter are decorating her face. “You’d probably accidentally cut off your own arm before you manage to land it on anyone else.” She’s wiping the tears from her eyes as her breath slowly returns, her cheeks still flushed a pretty pink.

“I take offense to that. I would be such a badass with one,” you rebuttal.

“Sure,” she squeaks out.

“I just might need a little practice first.”

She falls into a fit of giggles again, probably imagining you tripping over the long blade forgetting that she’s the clumsy one. Your cheeks are hurting from smiling, a warmth rooting itself within you, and for the first time in weeks the flower of hope feels like it will bloom soon. The delicate petals unfurling with a promise of prosperity, a promise that things will be okay.

“Hey,” Tanaka bursts through the door, a little out of breath like he ran here. “Kenma was able to track Oikawa. He’s still at the estate, probably never left.”

“You think he’s still alive?” You jump from your seat, Yachi at your side in an instant.

“Definitely. Yamaguchi said you left him in the basement, but Kenma can see his movements and he’s currently on the move.”

“But what if it’s not him? What if someone just found his body and is carrying it around?” You are skeptical, unsure if Oikawa was able to survive two gunshot wounds and a crash.

“First of all, that’s nasty,” he wrinkles his nose in disgust. “Second of all, I don’t think it matters. The person, Oikawa or not, is heading to the control center. We have five hours before the thing is set to explode, so we leave in four.”

“Got it. The reversal code is ready,” Yachi interjects before you can. “I’m ready,” she straightens her shoulders, eyes determined as she meets yours.

You grab the gun that is now still on the table and place it in the holster on your hip. “Me too.”

June 17, 2065

9:22pm

The front of the estate is surrounded by steel poles, roughly 16 feet tall. Weaved between each pole are copper wires that conduct heat and electricity constantly, making it difficult to enter without burns or electric shocks. Fortunately, Kenma was able to hack into the compound's firewall rather easily since it had been abandoned for months and disconnected the alarm system.

The group gathers around the front gate, those who specialize in combat form the first row and once you enter the plan is to split into various smaller groups. You would head straight to the control center with Yachi and Yamaguchi, while Tanaka and Terushima serve as bodyguards. Yamaguchi’s ankle is doing better, his limp gone and the reinforcement device adorning his wrist. You are all wearing bulletproof vests, the material surprisingly thin and breathable as it’s strapped over your tank top. Your cut is safely hidden beneath it.

The gates are set to open at 9:30, the distance fighters successfully hidden in the trees while everyone else fans out on either side of your group. Kuroo managed to hand out flash grenades and smoke bombs to every unit, the sulfur in the lab results of failed bombs that blew up prematurely. You search the crowd counting the bodies, committing the number to memory; twenty-six, hoping that it will be the same when you exit tonight.

Kenma is standing next to Kuroo and you watch as he sends up a mini drone. The device flying into the trees and an image of Hinata and Nishinoya flash on his phone. The boys are settled high up in the trees, Noya’s crossbow strapped to his back, while Hinata is busy tying knots into rope, his knives and shuriken hidden beneath his clothing.

You start to feel the signs of a tension headache strain your neck, the anticipation sucking your soul from the confines of your skin. Tanaka is kneeling in front of you and you stare at the muscles of his back flex and relax through his black sleeveless shirt as he laces up his boots. Once he’s finished he twists on the balls of his feet to face you, hands going to check your laces and tucking the hem of your cargos into them, your ankles thanking him for the extra support.

“It’s almost time,” he whacks your thigh so you look down at him. “You ready?”

You give him a small nod, “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

“You remember the plan, right? Once we enter those doors you stay behind me. I’ll say when the coast is clear, but if things get too crazy, Yachi is the priority,” he rises from his position. “Get her to the control center, then find me. Don’t do anything irrational,” he finishes.

You give him a nervous laugh, “I’ll try.”

“No, it’s not you’ll t-”

“I’m kidding, Ryu,” you cut him off.

“Not funny, love,” he turns around to settle next to Terushima, whose arm is extending behind him, pinky linking with Yamaguchi’s.You link your arms with Yachi’s as you wait, only five more minutes left.

“Welcome!” Everyone’s attention snaps to the balcony above the double doors of the entrance. Oikawa is standing there, pale and bloody. “I wasn’t expecting to have this many guests come to watch the end with me. This is so heartwarming.”

The gates creak and shudder as they shuffle open. Volunteers begin to reveal themselves from their hiding spots to gather at the front doors, but no one on your side of the gates moves. Your hand wraps around the hilt of your dagger and your stance shifts so that Yachi is partially blocked by you.

He spots you in the crowd and he has the nerve to smirk at you, the once endearing gesture looks pained on his hollowed cheeks and sunken eyes. A daunting beauty transforming his features. “Oh, darling, I’ve been expecting you,” he waves with his good hand, his injured arm is supported with a sling.

“I’m sure you’re glad to see me alive, but Iwa didn’t make it,” you can’t tell if he actually is pained by this with the way he sulks and leans on the rails. “So obviously I can’t let you leave here alive,” he giggles, almost drunkenly. “An eye for an eye or whatever they used to say.”

“I’ll kill him,” Tanaka snarls, gun pointing at Oikawa. You grip his arm to yank it down, fully aware that now is not the time.

“What was that about being irrational?” You hiss at him so he lowers his weapon. Oikawa sees this and you watch his entire demeanor change, his taunting gaze igniting into something far more terrifying.

“Who’s this, princess? You brought me a new toy?” His tone is flat, monotone. “Since you killed my last one!” You flinch at the rise in his voice, the rebels frozen in disbelief, a motivating fear beginning to billow through the crowd.

“We need to move,” Daichi’s deep voice diminishes Oikawa’s immediately. “NOW,” he screams and he’s the first on the move, gun firing shot after shot in the volunteers’ direction.

“STOP THEM!” Oikawa’s shrill shriek is hardly heard above the sounds of battle, but the volunteers do not hesitate. Their smell smacking the air from your lungs, no description adequate enough to warn you. Yachi’s hand is now firm in yours as you run close behind Tanaka. Your dagger unsheathed as your biceps tense with untapped energy. You slip through the front doors quickly, most of the fighting designated to those who formed the front lines.

You deduce that the volunteers are abnormally strong as you witness them tear metal like paper, and crack the estate’s concrete in single punches. Luckily, they are incredibly slow, their limbs swing and jerk in unsynchronized movements, as if they are babies taking their first steps. The rebels on the other hand are nimble, even the largest members fight with the agility of trained ballerinas, their movements fluid and graceful.

You yell for Tanaka and Terushima to take the stairs down to the basement. The claustrophobic idea of being stuck in an elevator is enough to stop your heart. Terushima reaches the door first, the force with which he tears it open rips it from its hinges.

You fly down the first flight, your grip on Yachi never loosening. Yamaguchi brings up the end, he’s holding nunchucks that you have no idea where he got them from. He flicks his wrist to swing them at one of the volunteers that followed you, the wood thwacking against her nose, splatters of blood erupt from her skull and dot Yamaguchi’s skin as she crumples to the floor, her body splaying out across the steps. “Don’t stop running!” He yells, hand grabbing Yachi’s elbow pushing you down the final flight to the basement.

The elevator dings at the end of the hallway, a ghastly Oikawa steps through and you catch a glimpse of silver. At first, you thought it had to be his veins visible through his milky skin, but now you can see the thin lines of silver snaking throughout his body. “He did not look like that yesterday,” Yamaguchi skids to a stop behind you.

Tanaka and Terushima have their weapons raised in front of you, a spear twirling in Teru’s hand. “Where’s the control room, Oikawa?” Tanaka calls out, his voice dripping with poison.

“Why would I tell you when they already know?” He quips, his retort losing substance when a wet cough breaks through his chest. “As you can see I can’t put up much of a fight,” he coughs again, dribbles of thinning blood leaks from his lips. “Iwa’s device doesn’t suit me too well,” he leans his neck to the side, a sickening pop coming from it.

“Iwa’s what?” You say it before you mean to, the situation only becoming creepier with every drop of new knowledge.

“You see, when Iwa was crushed, I found his body in the rubble. The implants we use jutting out from the skin between his shoulder blades, so I tore it out,” he staggers towards your group, the leg he was shot in scraping against the floor with each step. “I inserted it into the bullet wound above my knee,” he points to his twisted leg. “That way Iwa and I will always be together.”

“Dude, what the fuck,” Terushima says behind his hand as he gags. The smell of rotting flesh and rusty metal wafting through the hall with each drag of Oikawa’s leg.

You know he’s not down here alone, that he probably has volunteers stationed somewhere near the control center, but that’s down the hall, through another room. The five of you don’t stand a chance alone without knowing exactly how many are here. You also know that Oikawa’s breaths are numbered, his body actively rejecting the implant stealing away his time like he’s stalling yours.

“But if you really want to know,” he draws in a shallow breath and stops a few feet away from your group. “The control center is down this hall through that room,” he points to his right, the door cracked open. “I’ll let you pass, but good luck. I already input the code,” he inches towards the door and dramatically looks at his watch. “Seems like you only have 8 minutes.” 

He wags his fingers at you as he leans into the door, his weight pushing it open fully and he disappears in the darkness. Tanaka’s running first, fluidly rushing to the open door, but before he reaches it many of the other ones open. Decaying bodies hauling the burden of their transformation into the corridor. “Ryu, wait!” You call out to him but he’s already surrounded. He unsheathes the sword strapped to his back and swings it out in a swift circular arc to force the volunteers back. You count seven in total, all focused dangerously on your boyfriend. 

Terushima bends down in front of the three of you and unzips the pouch clipped around his hips. “Fall back,” he says.

“What’re you gonna do?” Yamaguchi bends at the waist to look over his shoulder. “I’m gonna use one of the stun grenades to distract them. Tanaka’s quick on his feet and he’ll know he only has a split second to escape. But first I need you guys to fall back.”

You’re hesitant at first, but Yachi tugs you away from them while Yamaguchi follows, still a step ahead. “Tanaka, get ready!” Terushima yells before he pulls the clip and tosses it. The grenade rolling to a stop at Tanaka’s feet. 

“Get down,” you turn to tackle Yachi in your arms, your body shielding her from any fallout. The flashes and popping noises signaling its detonation. You look up when some of the noise dies down, the door leading to the control center swinging wildly while the volunteers trip over themselves, disoriented and scattered at the end of the hall. You missed the exact moment, but three of the volunteers were now on the ground, their implants sliced out from their shoulder blades. The pincers on the devices opening and closing in search for their host. 

“Thanks, Tanaka,” Teru whispers in awe. “Impressive bastard took three of ‘em out on his own and discovered that you disable them by removing those creepy shits,” he laughs.

“Okay, babe, we’ll go in before the ladies,” he stands and helps Yamaguchi to his feet. “You take the small one in the corner. Leave the three big guys to me,” he smirks. 

“Now’s not the time to compete, Teru,” Yamaguchi sighs, grabbing a switchblade from his pocket, while clutching the revolver in his other hand.

“A little healthy competition never hurt nobody,” he nudges Yamaguchi with his shoulder, sending him a sly wink. “Trust me.” 

The boys bolt forward, weapons in hand as they twirl in combat, the first heavy body thumping to the ground. They clear the path for you and Yachi quickly, the space in front of the door now empty.

You grab Yachi and book it. Your concern for Tanaka’s safety rises exponentially as you rush to the control center, where he and Oikawa surely are.

The room opens up and near the center you see Oikawa and Tanaka arguing loudly, Tanaka’s gun pointing at Oikawa while he grips the sword behind him to keep the volunteers at bay. The control center is blinking, digital numbers floating above the panel counting down ominously. You have five minutes left and the prospects of disabling the system are low. The ring of volunteers lining the perimeter is your main obstacle because at any given moment their motionless blank stares could be activated. 

“What do we do?” Yachi whispers hurriedly beside you, no one noticing the two of you enter the room yet. 

“We get you to the panel in the next five minutes. How?” You’re trying to think as fast as possible. “I don’t know yet.” Thoughts are racing through your mind, words popping out to form some coherent thought before you rattle out your best plan. 

“I’ll distract Oikawa. You run as fast as you can to the panel,” you suggest. “And we pray some of the other rebels show up as back up.”

“That doesn’t sound like a very good plan,” Yachi bites the nail on her thumb.

“Well unless you have something better, I can’t think of anything else,” you respond, eyebrows raised and she shakes her head no. 

“So just walk behind Oikawa and hopefully he won’t see you. Once you’re out of his line of sight I’ll say something to get his attention,” you explain.

“Got it,” she nods, releasing your hand as she steps across your body to start moving towards the control center. The boys are still arguing and you get the sense that Tanaka knows you're there. Coincidentally, maneuvering his body to obscure Yachi until she isn’t visible to him.

“Tooru,” your voice echoes in the chamber. “How about we talk this out?”

His voice dies in his throat once he notices you. Somehow surprised that you would chase them down here. “I know I blew up on you in the past but just give me another chance. We can stall all of this,” you wave your hands around at the control center and all the volunteers. “And maybe come to a compromise.” 

Four minutes.

“Compromise? As if you even know the meaning of the word, princess,” there’s no endearment in his tone anymore. Just condescension and disgust. “I’ll start by killing your boyfriend and you can watch me. Then I’ll kill all your pathetic friends. Saving my sweet, sweet love for last,” his voice is eerily flat, similar to when he was speaking from the balcony earlier. 

Three minutes, twenty-three seconds.

“You son of a bitch, I’d like to see you try,” Tanaka growls, the sword that was pointed at the volunteers now positioned over Oikawa’s chest. “I’ll tear your heart out before you can lay a finger on her.”

“I sense a challenge,” Oikawa chuckles and steps so the tip of the sword is touching his chest. “Let’s test that. You heard him, right guys? Why don’t we see if this knight in shining armor can save his damsel in distress,” he knows he’s going to die here, he’s smiling from ear to ear at Tanaka and he reaches to wrap his hand around the sharp edge of the sword, blood spilling from his palm down his wrist. “Kill them.”

The volunteers bumble forward, their numbers overwhelming the three of you. Tanaka pulls his sword from Oikawa’s hand to go after them. Yachi is almost to the control panel, but a volunteer suddenly blocks her path, lunging to crush her beneath their fists. You sprint for her, she has a knife on her leg but it’s clear she forgot to reach for it. She ducks beneath their arm, she’s surprisingly agile despite her frequent clumsiness. There’s an opening between the monstrosity’s legs as they stupidly move to follow her. You slide on your knees straight between their legs to slice through their achille’s heel, cutting off the function of their lower body. They faceplant by Yachi’s feet as she shrieks from nearly being crushed as you climb the limp body, your fingers locating the implant and stabbing into the tough skin, the implant wiggling in your hands as you tear it out. The device latches on to your pointer finger to dig into your skin. You scream and shake it off immediately and it lands at Yachi’s feet before she stomps on it like a bug, the crunching resembling the sound of a cockroach beneath her boot.

There’s a grunt from Tanaka’s direction and you see he’s pinned Oikawa to the floor between his knees. The tussle looks like it’s in his favor when Oikawa rips the implant from the wound above his knee and attempts to insert it into the smooth skin of Tanaka’s neck. You stare as he screams in pain, the pincers scratching and cutting into him. You’re too far to use your dagger, you won’t make it before the implant is successfully transferred to him, so you reach for the pistol on your hip. You hold it out in front of you preparing your shot but it’s too risky. Tanaka’s back is to you and only with perfect aim will you be able to land a shot on Oikawa from over his shoulder, the trembling of your hands only worsening the situation.

Two minutes, twenty-five seconds.

The time will be out before you shoot your gun, before Yachi will make it to the control center. Despair ruining your disposition and any confidence you would have had taking this shot is snatched from you as Tanaka screams in pain. You position the gun as best you can, praying to any divine being who happens to hear you to bless you with perfect aim. You begin to squeeze the trigger, forcing your eyes to stay open, when an arrow comes whizzing past your cheek, the speed of it burning the soft skin. You stare in astonishment as it lodges itself in Oikawa’s eye, blood spraying everywhere from the impact and his body slumps to the ground, hand still clasping the implant as it fidgets in his fingertips. Tanaka cringes when he gets off of him and turns to Nishinoya, whose crossbow is still aimed at them and the tension in your shoulders ease slightly.

Your relief is short lived as you survey the situation. Nearly all of the rebels are here, but there are simply too many enemies and they don’t have enough energy to continue to fight. You jump from your spot to look for Yachi and she’s still running to the panel, the disaster gathered in the room preventing her from reaching it. You know it’s too late. Your naive dream beginning to wither away before your eyes so you rush to go get her. 

“Yachi, stop! It’s over,” You scream over the noise of the chaos around you, bodies strewn across the floor while blood begins to pool and smear everywhere. You are holding her arm, pulling her away from the control center in the middle of the room.

 “It’s not over, how could you give up so easily?! I can do this, you have to trust me! I am the only one who can decode the software. It’s my fault any of this is happening anyway. I did this!” Tears are flowing down her face in a violent stream. Her cheeks red with frustration and stress, eyes pleading with you to let her go. “I put all of you in danger! I’m an idiot and I should’ve been able to figure out their plan, but I had to go and try to prove myself to my mom! I-I had to ruin everything because I was so stupidly naive,” her voice was breaking around every syllable, guilt ripping through her. 

“But I can’t lose you!” The lump in your throat was making it difficult to speak as the only option dawned on you. The only option she is pleading for you trust her with. Tears are stinging at your eyes, threatening to spill over while you try desperately to hold them back. “Y-you’re my best friend,” you’re exhausted, the words sincere as they slide through the space between you. Yachi steps towards you, hand coming up to rest on your cheek to catch the stray tear slipping down. 

“I know and that’s why I need to do this. I need to save you. I need to save Yams. And the others. We can’t lose anymore lives because of something I created,” you let your eyes shut, all the fight you had leaving your body as your grip loosens on her arm. She wraps her arms around you for a final embrace, her body still for once, the trembling gone from her nerves as your arms hold her. “I know I can fix this, but I need for you to get as many people as you can out of here first,” she untangles herself from you. 

“There’s a large safe at the end of this hallway. The code is my birthday. Grab anyone left, anyone still alive and shut yourselves in there. I won’t be able to disconnect the devices in this building because I won’t have enough time so there will still be a loud explosion. When you hear that it’s safe to come out,” she takes a step away from you, expression fixed leaving you no room to argue. 

“O-okay,” you force the word from your lips because this was far from okay, “j-just know that, um, that I love you. So fucking much,” her figure begins to blur as the tears gather in your eyes. 

“I love you too, y/n. Promise me that you will make it out of here. Promise me that you will get to watch the sunset. A real one. For me,” she pleads and you blink to clear your vision, hot tears burning the raw skin of your under eyes. “Yes, I p-promise,” you choke on these last words. 

“Thank you. Now go, please” this is the calmest you have ever seen her as she steps away from you, body turning to clumsily run to the control panel. Time is moving in slow motion. The bodies around you moving in vivid detail. Every swing, punch, and kick are stuttering like a stop motion film. You don’t know if you’re breathing anymore, all of your functions glitching in a solitary moment of grief. 

“Hey, look at me!” You can hear Tanaka’s voice, see his figure pummeling towards you, but he’s fuzzy, out of focus. You think his hands are on your arms, but it feels distant and cold, a ghost of everything he is. “Hey!” He shakes you aggressively, your brain fighting against the current of sorrow dragging you below the murky surface. “Don’t let the last words you said to her be a lie! Don’t break this promise!” 

You cut through the surface and see Tanaka clearly. He’s covered in blood, his neck bleeding from where Oikawa punctured his skin with the implant. “We have to go. You have to go,” he shoves you to the exit, your motor functions working on autopilot. You grab who you can as you run for the safe. Yelling orders and instructions to anyone who can hear you. 

One minute, seventeen seconds.

Suga’s at your side holding up Ennoshita while Daichi is calling for people to rush to the safe. You make it there first, and incorrectly punch in the code at first, the small numbers duplicating, but you get it right the second try. The heavy door swinging open with surprising ease as you move out the way to let Suga and Ennoshita in before you. A few of the other guys bolt in soon after and you just stand there waiting for Tanaka, waiting for Yamaguchi, and Kenma, and Yachi. 

Yamaguchi cuts the corner first, Terushima on his tail. You feel a flash of relief when you see them, the distance between you closing rapidly. Yamaguchi trips over the step into the safe, but Terushima catches him before he makes contact with the ground, mumbling something to him that you can’t quite make out. 

Tanaka’s next and he’s screaming at you but you hardly hear him over the commotion. You hardly register the distance until he’s right in front of you again. “What are you doing just standing here?!” He yells. “Let’s go,” he practically lifts you into the room and holds your back to his chest against one of the metal walls, preventing you from running out again. 

You can’t tell who else enters the safe, your panic and grief merging in a merciless waltz. The door slams shut and Daichi is the last to come in, his strong hands holding firm on the handle. Your eyes now begin to scan the bodies in the room, some fine with just a few cuts and bruises, others worse, bleeding dangerously from various points in their body. You count like you did before any of this started. 

Twenty-six. Minus one. Twenty-five. 

You start from the corner opposite you, whispering number to face to name. 

Twenty-one, orange hair, brown eyes: Hinata. Twenty-two, flash of blonde, fixed glare: Nishinoya. Twenty-three, disheveled black hair-

“Where’s Kenma?” Kuroo’s voice breaks your trance. There’s only twenty-four people in the safe. 

“Where’s Kenma?” You repeat, fighting Tanaka’s grip to bolt to the door. 

“Daichi!” Kuroo screams. “Answer me!”

“He stayed behind,” Daichi’s shoulders fall in defeat. “Said something about this being his final move. That this was game over for him and the prize for winning would be our lives. Then stuck something on the door and told me to tell you that he’s,” he pauses, his usually solid voice wavering. “He said he’s not a loser.” 

“And you let him?!” Kuroo runs at him, intent on pulling him away from the door and ripping it open. “He’s an idiot! I have to go get him!” Daichi locks Kuroo’s arms behind his back. “Let me go!” He’s kicking and shoving, but Daichi refuses to stand down. “There’s still time! I HAVE TIME TO SAVE HIM!”

“There is no time, Tetsuro! We are out of time!” At this moment the floor rumbles, the walls vibrate as they shield you from the brunt of the blast. Kuroo’s reaction is visceral,  a primal scream blowing out his vocal chords as dust starts to fall from the ceiling. You watch Hinata fall to his knees, the inhibited light dimming in his eyes as his head falls in his hands, body convulsing with sobs. 

00:00

You’re drowning, your lungs are full of water, air sticking to the lining of your esophagus, the burning pain of no oxygen clouding your brain. Your head heavy on your neck, the effort of holding up your body wearing away as you let all of your weight fall back on Tanaka. His own body sliding down the wall until you’re both on the floor, you wailing pathetically between his legs and he just holds you to his chest, even when you resist and scream for him to leave you alone, he silently holds you. 

No one makes a move to leave. The burden of losing people weighing heavy in the tight, crowded room. 

You don’t remember too much after this. The solemn, dreadful walk back to the hideout is syrupy, your body hardly moving through the thickness of desolation. You stumble over bodies and slip on spilled blood, the aftermath of the explosion evident on every surface, making your ascent cumbersome as you climb out. The familiar fog an odd comfort concealing you from intrusive eyes. 

The hideout is stale and uneasy. Your heartbeat pulsing irregularly in your chest, grief induced anesthetic numbing your bloodstream. Tanaka’s room is dark and his bed looks unusually comfortable. You lurch towards it, but Tanaka stops you. His arms pulling you into the bathroom, the shower already running with steam creeping over the top of the glass door. He helps you undress and step into the tub, tying your hair up in a messy bun before the water hits you. He steps in behind you and swipes a wet cloth over your body. Blood, dirt, and dust turning the water at your feet a translucent brown as it disappears down the drain. 

Tanaka wraps new gauze around your waist, the sting of the alcohol barely noticeable anymore. You’re wearing one of his t-shirts as he tucks you into bed. His body settling in beside you, his strong arms cradling you in his embrace as he whispers gentle words of affirmation into your hair. His soothing voice eventually lulling you into a dreamless slumber. 

You wake up unexpectedly, the sounds of your own whimpers breaking the awful silence. “I’m here,” Tanaka pets your hair. “I’m not going anywhere, I’m right here,” he reassures you as his arms press you deeper to his chest. Your fingers clinging to the sheet draped over his bare torso. 

He leans down to pepper kisses across your tear stained cheeks. His lips connecting with every inch of skin. You tilt your face to catch his lips in a slow kiss, his movements initially hesitant. You drift your fingers to outline his collarbone, tracing along each line of muscle and ridge of scar tissue, determined to memorize all his imperfections. Determined to cement the entirety of his physique into your memory so he will never fade if he ever leaves you too. 

Your fingers stop at the waistband of his underwear, toying with the elastic before you venture further down as you sketch the dip of his hip bone, the sharpness of his pelvis, and the strength of his relaxed thigh behind your closed eyelids. He stops you before you can delve deeper. “We shouldn’t,” is all he says, lips still slotted perfectly between yours. 

“I want you, Ryu,” you’re aware of the desperation in your tone, aware of your need for physical touch emitting off of you in heady rays. “Please.” 

He screws his eyes shut, his internal dialogue written all over his handsome features. It’s not because he doesn’t want to, the evidence of his quiet arousal mere inches from your fingertips. He’s afraid of hurting you, afraid of pushing you too far even though you’re asking for this, but you want to show him how much you want him. How much you need him. 

How much you love him.

You gently pry your wrist from his loose grasp to massage the soft skin of his erection, slowing your motions when he stiffens. “Let me,” you plead beneath your breath. 

“Let me feel you, let me know you’re here.” 

You feel him nod above you, his body relaxing into your touch, his hips rutting gently into your palm until he’s painfully hard. He shifts to caress the back of your neck, tilting your head to look at him as he places a lingering kiss to your forehead. His lips smoothing over your features before he melts into you again. His kisses are slow and passionate, a welcome distraction to the flurry of disheartening emotions plaguing you. 

He rolls the both of you over so he’s resting on his elbows above you and removes your hand from his cock to place it over his heart. The action is cheesy but you can feel the heartbeat beneath his muscle. The steady, rhythmic pulse pumping blood through his veins, a sign that he is alive, that he’s breathing and he’s with you. 

You fight the tears begging to spill over, fearing that you might ruin the moment. He strokes your cheek, thumb rubbing soothing circles beneath the skin of your eyes. 

“I’m gonna touch you, okay?” His voice is broken from exhaustion and vulnerability, but his hand moves to shift your panties to the side when you nod for him to continue. His fingers slipping between your folds to gather the slick at your entrance, circling your clit lightly. You lift your hips to roll into his fingers, silently asking for more as your pleasure begins to prickle at your nerves. 

He begins to move away from you and for a moment you think he’s going to stop, instead he pulls himself from his boxers and strokes whatever slick he gathered over his erection. The tip of his cock a blossoming red as he continues to touch himself. “Ryu, hurry,” you whine, impatience beginning to nag at you, body seeking the delirious sensation of pleasure. 

“I’ll take care of you, don’t worry,” his voice is soft, the meaning of his words holding avenues of interpretations as he positions himself at your entrance. His arm shakes with strain beside your face as he pushes his head past your initial ring of muscle, stopping midway to thrust shallowly. Despite your begging for him to hurry up, you’re still tense, your walls clenching tight around him. 

“Baby, I need you to relax,” he says through gritted teeth, the efforts of restraining himself lock his muscles into place, but you take a deep breath at his words, allowing your legs to fall open around his hips, crossing your ankles behind the small of his back. 

“Move,” your breath catches in your throat as he thrusts a little deeper that time. “I’ll be fine, just move.” 

He looks at you for a long moment, eyes searching yours for even a semblance of doubt. When he doesn’t find it, he rests his forehead on yours, eyes closed as he sheathes himself inside you entirely. You feel too full when he doesn’t follow through so you wiggle your hips to press firmly into his, a low groan reverberating through his chest as you grind against him, your arms stationed securely around his neck. 

Not too long after he begins to meet the rocking of your hips, his movements deliberate and measured. You keen into his touch as his head falls to rest beside your neck, mouthing the skin to muffle his moans as his pace quickens. 

He slips his arms beneath your back, hugging you tightly to his chest. The new angle sends a jolt of electric pleasure through your veins, his thrusts are determined as he searches for your release. 

“Not gonna last long,” he groans into your neck, fingers digging into your sides as he tries to stall his own release. You’re closer than he thinks though, your head is swimming with euphoria, brain clouded with the tastes of ecstasy. 

“Don’t stop, Ryu. I’m so close,” you beg, your voice dripping with desire. You feel one of his hands move to fist the sheet below you as he breaks his steady pace, the force of his hips jostling you passionately. The pressure building in your abdomen is unbearable, his cock slamming into your sensitive walls fervently. 

“Fuck,” you moan into his ear as your senses crash, your body singing with unexpected bliss. His thrusts begin to falter, his own release on the horizon as his grip on you hardens. 

“M’gonna come,” he stutters out, voice gravelly with need. “Need you to move, so I, shit,” he’s struggling to get his words out as the hand fisting the sheet moves to wrap around your calf. “So I can pull out,” he groans and pushes on your leg to unlock your ankles. 

“No,” you refuse. “Inside, just come inside, please Ryu” he never has, the implications too dangerous for him to ever consider, but right now you need to feel every part of him. 

“Baby,” he whines, his voice an octave higher. The desperation in your tone crumbling his resolve and before he can say no he’s spilling inside you. The sporadic contractions of your walls around his cock coupled with the way you whimper his name against the shell of his ear is what ruins him. 

He collapses on top of you, his dense weight flattening you into the mattress as he twitches inside you. You don’t mind the heaviness, content with falling asleep just like this but he rolls the both of you on your sides, probably realizing he was crushing you. 

His face is still nestled in the groove of your neck when you feel him chuckle against your skin. “Can’t believe you tricked me into doing that?” A small smile stretching his lips on your shoulder. 

“Trick? I wouldn’t it call it that,” a matching smile plays on your features. 

“It was sneaky and you know it.” You laugh despite everything that happened today. 

“I love you,” you never said it back, but you’re certain now as your body flows with appreciation. 

“I love you too.”

June 18, 2065

6:38am

It’s too early to wake up, but your mind disregards your obvious fatigue when you find yourself on Tanaka’s balcony. The events of last night looping perpetually in your head as you stare at the city that was supposed to be demolished. There’s no movement, hardly any noise beside the buzzing neon sign flickering four floors down. It’s as if everyone is in mourning. A victory cause for celebration, but the density of grief burdens the atmosphere. 

“What’re doing up?” Tanaka appears behind you, arms enclosing around your waist. 

“Couldn’t sleep anymore,” you reply dryly. He hums behind you and rests his chin on your head as you two watch the sky change from a deep purple to the dull pink that never cuts through the fog. 

“What now?” You ask, not really expecting an answer. 

“I’m not sure,” he shrugs, this transition stretching into miles of uncharted area. 

“We leave,” he says, finally. 

“Where would we even go?” Confusion laces your tone. The two of you have never left Tokyo, partially because it was impossible with the barrier surrounding the city.

“Miyagi,” he says as if he’s familiar with the prefecture. 

“I don’t know,” you hesitate. “There was a project I wanted to complete for,” your voice fades into the early morning. The image of the simulation machine popping into your mind as you remember the pixelated beach glitching in the large room. The last moment you had with him. 

“Bring it with you,” Tanaka suggests as he turns you in his embrace to look at him.

“What’s in Miyagi?” His adamant stare confusing you further. 

“My sister,” he’s never mentioned her before, and you raise your eyebrows in question. “A few of the rebels left here right before you showed up to search for others. She led them,” he explains. 

“I hadn’t heard from her until she called me two days ago. I was worried something happened, but she’s fine,” he shakes his head. 

“I obviously didn’t get the chance to tell you, but she’s there and they found more than they were expecting.”

“How did they even get past the barrier?” 

“Kenma.” His tone softens around his name, but you're not the least bit surprised that he managed to break down the barrier. 

“Of course.” You rest your head against his chest.

“The rebellion is stronger there. We may have a chance to save all of Japan. Not just Tokyo,” you process his words, unsure of how to respond. 

“And,” he cups your neck so you’re staring into his eyes. “The sun sets in Miyagi.”

[crossdressingdeath]

I know you'll probably disagree with me, but i rlly hate the Cloud recessess ending. It's just....

Those elders killed wwx. The Lans were 100% ready to murder both at Qiongqi path but also at the siege. They see him as the guy who corrupted their precious jade. They all preach righteousness, but the whole madam Lan thing is iffy at best and i do not believe that everyone there fully believes the rules. Hell, i have a special bone to pick with the " do not gossip" rule, seeing as gossip had been the main info route for women in patriarchal societies.

I just don't think that after wwx killed Lans in the siege they'd be all that willing to forgive him and take him in w open arms. The juniors and kids love him, yes, but people who saw the war....

Not to mention the whole " do not speak to WWX " rule. I've seen ppl say it's a joke but it's On The Wall. It's supposed to be followed. Even if it was intended as a joke - which i don't believe - it's very cruel for someone w rejection and trust issues.

I also hate it from a very personal perspective. I see Wwx as ND, and, as an ND myself, all those rules terrify me. From the no running and the proper posture ones, i can pretty well imagine they forbid stimming. The Lan curfew would fuck anyone with insomnia and there's smth deeply ucked up abt the " do not grieve in excess". I get that they're supossed to be a paragon of the best things at all time, and that LJY is very UnLan like, but for someone w anxiety who CAN'T follow those rules, it would be a nightmare.

...Some points:

First, the Lan elders did not kill WWX, nor did they attack him unfairly. They weren’t looking at him as the man who corrupted LWJ, either, or at least that wasn’t their primary concern (I will never forgive CQL for suggesting they were or it was); they were looking at him as a traitor to the sects who was raising an army to destroy them. Remember, that is the information the Lans had. Every source they had except for LWJ (who the people he would have gone to would have known was biased and who presumably everyone knew had recently been in close contact with WWX where he could have been manipulated or enchanted in some way), sources which included multiple sect leaders (one of whom was WWX’s brother) and LXC’s dear friend, swore up and down that WWX was a major threat, and let’s face it, WWX didn’t do much to dissuade people from thinking that! Acting like the Lans were maliciously targeting WWX is doing them something of a disservice, I’d say. They acted based on the knowledge they had available; note how the Lans are the first to offer WWX their help once they’re given reason to believe he may not be a villain! And even aside from that, saying they killed WWX (and not JGS and JGY’s manipulation or JC’s army) feels a bit like scapegoating, honestly. Of the four sects, the Lans are quite possibly the least responsible for WWX’s death. If it would hurt him to live with or around anyone who held any responsibility for his death his only option would be to live as a hermit, which would be far worse for him. And yeah, the Lans aren’t perfectly righteous all the time and some morally dubious things have been done by Lan sect members; they’re human, after all! Some of them will only be as moral as their sect leader demands they be! That doesn’t mean the sect as a whole is bad, especially with LXC, LQR and LWJ in charge. Certainly I’d say they’re still better than the other sects, all things considered. One ambiguous situation that may or may not have involved some members of the previous generation doing some fucked up shit doesn’t mean WWX would for sure be mistreated! 

As for gossip... there’s a difference between sharing information and gossiping. There’s no evidence that the Lan women are blocked from... y’know, freely communicating and sharing information between themselves. We have no reason to believe they are reliant on gossip. Also they presumably go out night hunting just like the men? Men and women are kept separate in the Cloud Recesses, but I get the sense that that’s more like... school stuff than anything else. The women aren’t exactly locked up, they can be cultivators! The society is still sexist, but that doesn’t mean they’re kept from going out and doing things. And I need to make this clear: there is a fair chance that the rule against gossip saved LWJ’s life, because it kept word of him defending WWX from the sects from spreading to people who would not be willing to let bygones be bygones. Gossip sucks! It hurts people! A lot of this story (and more to the point the suffering of the characters within the story) happens because of gossip! The Lans banning gossip is pretty clearly supposed to be a good thing, I’d say.

And yeah, maybe after WWX killed a bunch of their sect the Lans wouldn’t accept him with open arms as if nothing ever happened! And that’s fair! I can’t imagine where WWX could go where that wouldn’t be the case, unless he and LWJ chose to abandon the cultivation world forever. But you know what else the Lans won’t do? Try to execute him. Or from what we see in the extras even dwell on the past that much. No, the Lans aren’t going to immediately forgive WWX and bring him into the fold without a moment’s hesitation, but you know what? They accept his marriage to LWJ! They let him supervise the juniors on night hunts! They consider him part of their sect! Honestly, that is all WWX can really ask and far more than he’d get from any other sect. There are consequences for what WWX did, even though he wasn’t the villain or necessarily trying to hurt anyone, and frankly people not being entirely comfortable with his presence is very much reasonable.

The “do not speak to WWX” rule may not be a joke, but it’s also pretty clearly not a serious rule. No one takes it seriously. The juniors (the only people WWX really talks to anyway aside from LXC and LWJ) only pay it the minimum lip service of talking to him off the path. WWX himself sure as hell doesn’t care! He clearly finds it pretty damn funny. And I don’t think a guy who has never liked him once again proving he does not like him (in a way that is clearly temporary given how later LQR invites WWX to the Lan family banquet with... reasonable amounts of grace, thereby implicitly accepting him as LWJ’s husband and therefore his own family by marriage) counts as a rejection or a breach of WWX’s trust? Like, LQR has literally always hated WWX. He isn’t preventing WWX and LWJ from spending time together or shutting WWX out of the Cloud Recesses or even making a concentrated effort to keep people from talking to him; he’s venting his frustrations, but if he really intended to block WWX from taking part in life in the Cloud Recesses he would’ve done a hell of a lot more than just make a rule who no one WWX likes follows anyway. It’s a temper tantrum, that’s all, and clearly that’s what WWX takes it as. I mean, if nothing else you can’t ban people from talking to the sect heir’s spouse indefinitely. That’s just not sustainable.

As for the rules... banning people from running in the Cloud Recesses and demanding proper posture during lessons doesn’t suggest to me that they wouldn’t allow stimming? ‘No running’ at least is a common rule... most places. It’s distracting, and can be dangerous. And the rule about sitting properly doesn’t mean “Don’t move at all ever”; it means... well, “sit properly”. Don’t slouch or sprawl across the floor. I see no reason why that wouldn’t preclude means of stimming that wouldn’t be disruptive (and given this is in a classroom environment “not disruptive” is kind of important). I mean, those rules certainly don’t suggest that they’re any worse than other sects, and given this is the sect that has magic music for calming people’s minds if any sect would give allowances for neurodivergence it would be this one. Also I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a song to put people to sleep, or medication that can help; this is a world with magic, after all, and if there’s a song that can put spirits to rest there are probably songs for human medicine and care. And of course there’s an element of conflicting needs; maybe the rules would screw you over, but frankly firmly enforced rules keeping people from running around or sprawling out of their seats would’ve been a godsend for me in school, given how much trouble I had focusing with people making noise around me. At the end of the day, is it guaranteed that the Lans would make allowances for people with needs that conflict with the Lan rules? No. But I’d argue it’s more likely that they would than any other sect. This is ahistorical fantasy ancient China, too; you can only expect so much in the mental health department. Still, a sect that literally invented magic music for calming the mind actually seems like the best choice for people with anxiety and such. There’s a reason why there are multiple fics that essentially set the Lans up as mental health experts in the setting!

Basically, a lot of your arguments seem to be issues that WWX would have in any sect. Unless he wanted to give up on the support of a sect altogether, they’re all things that he would have to work through or come to terms with. And of course... the most important point is that WWX is happy in the Lan sect. The extras make that clear. He has a home, duties that he enjoys performing, the love of his family and the support of his sect. He’s happy. I just... I do not understand why people keep feeling the need to try to make it angsty when the novel makes it clear that he genuinely enjoys his life in Gusu, and more than that that if he ever decided he didn’t enjoy it he could leave at any time. You have to remember that: if WWX wanted to leave... he would. He and LWJ would just go, and only come back occasionally so that LWJ could visit his home. Hell, LWJ would insist on leaving for WWX’s sake. So like... the Lan sect wouldn’t suit everyone, but WWX is quite content there and doesn’t want to leave. He’s happy and free to come and go as he wishes; there really isn’t anything to be concerned about there.

[mooshs-crack-headcanons]

Hi, Moosh! (New OP writing blog! Yay!) Can I request HCs for Law, Killer, Kid and Robin confessing to their crush after a dangerous situation? Maybe a battle or something? And their reaction when their crush reciprocate their feelings? Thank you!! Good luck with your blog! ♡

(With these all except Law's (which I'm ify on) I'm proud of but I still hope you like it!💙)

Law

Now Law could admit most times he was in fact a stubborn asshole.

Not that he'd ever admit it out loud though.

Most of his 'loner' 'no I have no emotions, get away from me' attitude came from a dark place of deep riddled trauma and trust issues.

He promised himself from a very young age that he wouldn't let anyone else in, that everyone around him was destined to fail and die at some point. No matter  what he was determined to stick to his guns, use people as he needed and accomplish his own set of goals.

Yeah? All of that? All of that was thrown out the window once you came into the picture.

You were brought to him with anyone's pleas and begging to let you join the crew, and with about twenty against one, it seemed like he had really no choice.

He couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was about you, was it how you treated the others? How you seemed to smile no matter how dark the outcome looked? How your eyes seemed to light up every time you looked at him the feeling in his chest would-whatever it was, he knew what he felt would only end up into trouble in the end.

With every passing day it seemed he learned more and more about you; your relationship-more like lacking relationship-with your parents, your desire to see the sea, your hobbies, and your dreams. Law's not a forgetful man, everything of importance you tell him he makes a mental note of in the back of his mind.

Everything about you kept tugging on his heart, he couldn't get you out of his brain and until that day he tried his best to keep it suppressed inside until he couldn't anymore.

It was supposed to be a very short trip to that island, pick up the supplies and necessary information about the area then leave.

Oh how things went wrong so quickly.

The crew was split up into two groups: one led by Law for tract an information broker, and the other led by you to fetch supplies and return to the ship by sundown. Everything started out alright, Law got the information he needed in a reasonable time, just not the exact info he sat out for, instead he quickly found out that the town was actually ran by a pirate crew that pulled the strings of the town's mayor, and they were not happy the Heart pirates were on their territory.

His group ran into the market in search for your group, once they found you, you were already heavily battered while in combat, and Penguin was holding a very injured Bepo.

It didn't take a lot of Room and Shambles to quickly cut the confrontation short.

Once back on the Polar Tang you and Bepo were brought to the Medical ward. Bepo was treated to a few stitches and banged up limbs while you were diagnosed with a condition to blunt trauma to the head and a few removed bullets. Once Bepo fell asleep, Law brought up a chair to set next to your bed as you stared up at the ceiling.

"How are you feeling?"

"Woozy."

"That's normal, you just need to rest it off."

He took a slow sip of his coffee before setting it on your nightstand.

"Penguin told me what happened. You were the first one to mindlessly charge at them. Do you realise how foolish that was?!"

"They already had their weapons drawn, the intentions were already established. There wasn't any reasonable way to deal with them, if there was I would have done it."

"That's no excuse to run in blind, (Name)!"

You closed your eyes as you remained silent. Law taps his foot a couple of times before letting his face fall into his hands.

"Look...you were protecting the crew. I get it, but…" You looked back at the surgeon.

"But what?"

"Risking your life isn't worth it!" A look of disbelief emerged on your face and you sprang to sit up.

"So what?! They can all die instead?! Law that's sick!"

"That's not what I meant-"

"Then what do you mean?!"

"(Name), please-"

"No! What do you mean?! Are you saying my life is more-"

"I don't want to lose you like the rest."

A true look of confusion fell on your face. What does that mean?

He looked up at you, tears barely visible in his eyes.

"I lose everyone I care about. I don't want it happening to you too."

Oh.

Oh shit.

"Don't get me wrong, I want nothing happening to the rest of the crew too, but-" Law shook his head as he rose out of the chair onto his feet. "Forget it, I'm making it worse and you're not in the condition-"

You caught his hand.

He looked back at you, completely conflicted. You gave him the smallest yet loving of smiles.

His heart wrenched.

Stop it. Stop what you're doing right now. His legs felt weak as your grip on his hand softened. He gently sat by your bedside, you moved closer to rest your head on his shoulder, his breath felt uneasy as it rattled his chest, until your fingers started to trace his.

Touch by touch he felt himself start to calm down. He hesitantly looked back at you, his eyes widened at how soft and loving your eyes were.

Corazon, please forgive him what he's about to do.

One hand lifted up your face as your expression turned into confused shock. What was he doing? Oh. Well now he was kissing you.

Yay…

Once he pulled back he nudged his head between your shoulder so you couldn't look at his face. But you hear the struggled out sobs. You wrapped your arms around his sides, silently encouraging him to let it all out.

He couldn't help how he felt about you, but he didn't want what happened to everyone else that was in his life happen to you.

No he wasn't going to let it happen to you.

Killer

Despite his name, we all know Killer's a sweetheart.

He's not only a sweetheart, but he's level headed, very knowledgeable, isn't afraid to take care of his captain's bullshit, and he's absolutely head over heels for you.

Kid swore that his first mate talked about you more than anything else. Sure it did make the captain upset that you had his attention more than he did, but he was happy his friend had found someone to make him happy.

It didn't stop the gagging motions, the jokes and teasing, and the occasional: "Just fuck already!" outburst.

To Kid, it was very obvious that you liked him too, and very the very impatient man child he is, decided enough is enough and gathered the test of the crew to come up with a plan.

And not the: 'get them in a room alone to talk about their feelings' bullshit either! No! If his friend was going to get the love of his life he was going to do it fun and memorable.

And fun and memorable to Kid means dangerous.

Kid and crew purposely pissed off the group of marines in town.

They split up and purposely left you and Killer on your own defenses together.

Once the bullet grazed the side of your head, Killer picked you up (in those big beefy arms of his) and quickly dashed you off into the next alley, the following marines missing the two of you and continuing on down the street of town.

Once he sat you down on a box, he touched the area around your wounds, you instantly hissing in pain granting you a quick quiet sorry from him.

He looked around for something to use as a temporary bandage to stop the bleeding until the two of you could get back to the Victoria Punk.

A lightbulb went off in his head as he reached for his shirt.

Nope not like a: 'let me rip off a piece of my shirt to apply to your injury' a fucking: 'let me take off my whole deadass shirt and let me wrap around your head.'

You sat cheeks scarlet as he struggled to get the shirt off over his head without taking off his mask. Once he succeeded, he shook his blonde locks back in place behind him before he went to work tying it around you.

Once he finished he took a small step back, admiring his work.

Oh god the shirt smelled like him (that's going in the memory bank)

Killer took a step to look out of the alley before cursing to himself, going back over to you.

"Marines are still in the street, I don't see much of an opening." He whispered.

"Then what do we do?" You whispered back. He scratched his head.

"I don't see the rooftops being a safe getaway, I suggested we either wait here for Kid or for an opening."

You nodded, honestly you didn't want to get back to ship because then Killer's shirt bandage would have to be removed, and you wanted as much time committing it to memory as possible.

Killer slumped next to you on the box, your eyes darting to avoid him.

Time crept by, Killer asking how you felt from time to time, you told him you were fine but you did feel woozy, he seemed to be able to tell and would start to check for more openings more often.

You eventually looked over to him (trying to ignore the shirtlessness) and gave him a small smile, he looked back at you for a few long moments before looking to his lap, letting out a sigh.

"You know I trust you right? Like a lot?" You nodded.

You gave the blonde a nod.

He let another sigh leave his lips as he slowly and hesitantly went up to take off his mask. He looked back to you for the first time truly face to face.

Your heart caught in your chest as your mouth fell agape.

The desperate look in his eyes seemed to tell you he couldn't tell what your reaction meant and went to quickly put the mask back on, but you caught his hands before he could. He looked back to you as you lowered his hands to let the mask fall into his lap. You smiled.

"You look very handsome, Killer."

He felt all possible words caught in his throat. Your eyes softened as your hands left his and slowly lifted to touch barely his face, the look you gave him asking for consent.

He felt his face be held by your hands. Your fingers rubbed and took in every bit of him, he let his eyes close as his face either warmed up to your touch or in embarrassment, or both he couldn't tell. Once he reopened his eyes, you were much closer than before.

Moving on his own, it was only after the two of you parted that he realised that your lips had met. With that realization, his eyes shined in bewilderment. You giggled as you pressed your forehead against his.

With your arms wrapped around each other, taking each other in did you not hear the yelps and screams of the marines behind you (somehow. Because the power of love or smth)  neither did you hear the bootsteps.

"Hey guys! It looks like we were about to miss a whole show!"

The two of you quickly tore apart as Killer quickly scrambled to put his mask back on before turning around to see his captain laughing next to Heat and Wire who made their way next to him.

Killer sprang up, heat cheeks hidden behind the mask, as he helped you onto your feet. The sight of the vice captain's shirt on your head seemed to increase the captain's laughter.

Kid laughter died down as he watched as his friend pulled you by the hand in the direction of the ship. He knew his plan would work, why wouldn't they? He is Captain Eutass Kid after all. Knowing this would make Killer happy, sparked a sense of pride in him.

Doesn't mean he would never joke about the time he would've possibly caught the two of them possibly fucking in an alley though.

Kid

There is many things Captain Eutass Kid is, but being stupid is not one of them.

Sure, reckless. But not stupid.

And he sure has a fucking temper.

Him and the rest of his crew sat quietly (ha, really? Okay Kid.) minding their own business in the back of the bar.

You sat next to him, drinking away having a nice laugh with Heat when this fucking idiot showed up.

He put an hand on the back of your chair and introduced himself as Captain Dickface (Dicksen) a captain whose made himself a big name (Kid never hear of him) and would just 'love' (fucking gross) to buy you a drink and for you to come over to drink along him and the rest of his men.

You turned down the offer (because you're fucking smart, that's why you're a part of his crew)

But here's the kicker.

As Captain Dickass went back to his table, Kid heard the names he called you under his breath.

So, Kid politely introduced his metal fist, to Captain Dickpiss' face.

And that's how he 'accidentally' destroyed the whole bar in a brawl.

The moment you brought him to the infirmary you cussed, yelled, screamed in every possible way how idiotic what the captain did was.

He sat on the bench, holding the ice pack to his face as he let you raise your voice at him (because you got special privileges)

You rolled your eyes at the amuse look on his face.

"What Dicksen said didn't bother me. What you did was totally unnecessary."

Kid scoffed. "Yeah right, like I was going to let anyone mock a member of my crew and get away with it!"

"You broke his nose."

"Dickface deserved it!"

You sat down next to him on the bench, gesturing him to let you see his hand. He hesitantly let you take ahold of it to start taking care of his bashed knuckles. With each dap of alcohol swab, he hissed.

With clenched teeth he studied your gentle facial expression.

What he did, yes he did because your a member of his crew (and no one fucks with a member of HIS crew) but also because he-what's that word Killer told him was the word for how he felt? Likes! He likes you.

Doesn't mean he has any clue what to do.

Once you got started with wrapping up the captain's hand, did Kid really think about things. He likes you? What was he supposed to do? Killer said something about sharing feeling but fuck feelings.

You stood up off the bench and went to go to your desk, telling him he could leave now.

You two were alone.

Kid figured, you know what fuck it? People press eat each other's faces to show 'liking' each other right? Why not now?

The ice pack that was originally on his face was left carelessly on the bench as he got up on and made his way toward you, you looked back about to repeat your early notion he could leave but found yourself surprised when he roughly turned you around to catch your lips sloppily to his, teeth clanking  together.

A big shitty eating grin doubled your confusion as he pulled back.

"Kid what the fuck what that?" His grin dropped.

"What do you mean? That's the gross way people show they like each other."

Instantly, the statement got you rolling which the redhead found himself angrily taken back.

"Why the hell are you laughing?! This is the way I'm showing you I like you, you fucking moron!"

You smiled as your hands found themselves on his face with a: "Oh, Kid." The captain raised an eyebrow in confusion before your lips softly met his.

Oh. Okay. His heart feels light, that's new.

When you pulled back, his bewildered eyes brought you amusement, his cheeks flushed pink.

"Ya mind doing that again?

Robin

Robin is a talented woman with a lot of things.

Keeping things hidden about herself is one of them.

From the very moment she joined the Strawhats, she promised herself she wouldn't get attached. But as time went on, with Jaya and Skypiea...things got harder.

She absolutely refused to let innocents get caught up in her running from her past. She even refused to say anyone's name, just by their title just to lay double on that.

But in a moment she couldn't exactly pinpoint, she longed to be a part of this little makeshift family. And out of all of them, you made things so much harder for her.

You were so calm, level headed, smart, kind, passionate-just everything you did caught her attention.

Which made things even more difficult than it already was on Water 7. With every plea you cried asking her why she wanted out, she could feel her cold lonely heart break more and more. 

And when she cried out her plea to live for Luffy, the look on your face made her sob even more. She wanted to continue to journey on sea, and she wanted to continue to live to see your dreams come to fruition as well. 

It was after her talk with Aokiji that she set off to find you. She found you out on the very edge of the party, you sat against a wall with your bottle in your hand as you avoided her gaze. 

You barely spoke a single word to her since the crew escaped Enies Lobby. She stood in front of you, her eyes half lidded and her hands at her sides. 

"Aren't you missing the party? The rest of the crew's celebrating mostly for you anyway." You said, voice hoarse. 

Robin shook her head as she went over to stand next to you, her back hitting the brick. 

"It's fine. I am glad to be back though." 

You chugged down more of your bottle, the alcohol burning your throat. Tears pricked your eyes. 

"For the longest time on that train, I thought I was going to lose you, Robin. I still…"

"I'm not going anywhere," she assured. "You all are stuck with me." 

You looked up at the smile she gave you. You looked to the bottle in your hands before gesturing it to her. 

And that's how the two off you ended sitting in each other's arms, taking turns sipping from the bottle of sake, laughing at all the past events the crew found themselves in. 

Robin found her fingers playing with your hair as you leaned into her chest, her slow breaths reminding you that she is alive and with you now. 

Alive. 

You closed your eyes as you nuzzled against her, tears threatened to form in your eyes. 

"I'm so glad you're alive, Robin." 

Robin felt taken back. 

That's right...people actually wants her alive. 

Her finger in your hair stopped as you looked up at her first assurance. With one slow movement, Robin pressed her lips to yours. 

With your heart thumping in your ears and your head suddenly thrown up into the clouds your hands tangled themselves in her raven hair. 

Once Robin pulled away, she sobbed her arms tightly around you as she pulled you close. 

"I'm so glad to be alive." 

And she promised she would always be. For you and the crew. 

She was a Strawhat. 

[wolfcha1k]

An analysis on Guy, Eep and Grug NOBODY asked for in Croods - A New Age but tough shit

help

So its theory time :U Since this trailer seems to finally go into Guy’s perspective over things happening in the story. It seems like though Guy has been accepted into the Croods family, its not peaches and cream as one would think. Guy is used to having personal space, basically being able to have peace and quiet. Now after a lifetime of solitude [srsly, how long has he been alone??], this is a big adjustment for him. I don’t doubt he doesn’t care and love the Croods like family because they are his family now, he gave up a lot for them and Eep. There’s something of a culture difference between the family and him, with the Croods being used to being jam packed together and Guy who is more used to personal space.

Look how excited he gets over having his own space once they get to the Betterman Farm!

This also translates into his relationship with Eep. If you notice in a lot of the teasers so far, they’re never alone together. Grug is usually looming in the background or the family is there, they’re even using Chunky of all things to try getting away from them.

[also judging by the weave work here on the wood she’s probably in one of the spare rooms at the farm and the fact the clip launched with ‘World’s First Crush’, it might be safe to say even Eep starts to enjoy having privacy since this means you know, more Guy time but I’ll get more into Eep and what I think their ‘conflict’ will be later!] 

but ofc Grug is still there getting in their way, and if you’re a teenage boy in love with a girl, it bites hard that you can’t just enjoy one on one time alone with her. They keep getting interrupted whether it be by animals, the family, Grug or nature itself; that would cause tension for anyone’s relationship. Guy even needs to explain to Eep what privacy is and knowing how she lived, ofc this is a real weird and exciting concept for someone so used to having other people breathing down her neck.  

This translates into his relationship with Grug because I personally feel this has nothing to do with Eep herself and Guy doesn’t hold that against her. Grug is mentioned in interviews that he’s “not ready to accept Eep is all grown up and has her relationship with Guy” and that “she’s ready to leave the pack”, as Grug calls it. 

They survived the end of the world, but dynamics change, and I love continuing with where do Eep (Emma Stone’s character) and Guy (Ryan Reynolds) leave off (with their romantic relationship) and how does Grug (Nicolas Cage) accept the change that his daughter is now grown up? So we definitely further those themes of a father not wanting his daughter to leave “the pack” – as they call it – but she’s ready, and her relationship with Guy starts off where it ended in the first film.

Guy even causes what seems will be quite a fight when he tells Grug to chill out after Grug mentions “the pack is stronger together”. 

Grug probably wouldn’t be having this kind of fear if there was nothing to fear. It might be safe to say Guy and Eep are planning to leave the nest to be on their own. They’re both young adults and in love, its a natural step in a relationship to want to fly the coop. This snippet here really gives me those “engagement/promise ring” vibes with how Guy is holding the rock drawing and Eep is reacting. 

Just what did he say before this? They’re also huddling away and discussing privacy, perhaps it was the lead up into “Hey Eep, let’s move out”, or whatever the caveman version of it is.

and Grug is watching them very worriedly. 

There is something up going on with them now, and though Grug has accepted Guy and Eep, this isn’t a step he’s ready for as a father [and honestly probably after surviving The End/repaired his relationship with Eep, didn’t think would be coming this soon]

This segment in the interview really heavily implies these sort of things too:

The world is always changing, and families also change. As a father, Grug’s maybe not ready for the next step of his daughter leaving home. And with Eep and Guy I thought, “This is a great opportunity to now hand it off to them.” In the first movie it’s like puppy love between Eep and Guy. They meet each other, and they’re in love. But they’re the only two teenagers in the world, so of course they love each other. This story answers the question of why they actually belong to each other. Through the course of this story, we challenge what their relationship means, and why they should spend their future together.

You don’t talk about challenging what a relationship means and what their future will be without planning something surrounding that. They are planning and its freaking Grug out.

I also think in Grug’s own way he doesn’t want to see Guy go either, since it must say a lot about how different the dynamic of Guy and Grug’s relationship as a son and father figue have shifted if Guy feels he can tell Grug to calm down and also flirt/court Eep with protective daddy vision on him all hours of the day. When the Betterman’s show up, I am convinced Grug is going to get defensive over Guy bc he’s now as good as his son.

There’s also these little moments which seem pretty small but:

[as sour as Guy looks here, it probably means a lot for Grug to actually let Guy be in their sleep pile]

[also look how pure and excited Guy is to share about the shower with Eep and Grug]

I feel Grug does care for Guy but being how Grug is has unintentionally made Guy feel like an outsider in the Croods clan.

Now, back to the Bettermans and Guy. The lifestyle they live is clean, modernized and has routine, things Guy is probably craving with an inventive mind such as his. He’s just in heaven rn. These people are more like him than the Croods are, and I don’t mean that in a bad way. The Croods are still important to him but it probably feels invigorating to meet likeminded people.

You can already tell in the trailers Guy is going to form a bond with them. Part of me doubts they’re actually related to Guy like as parents and a sister but I won’t rule out the possibility, considering how invested Phil seems to be with Guy in a lot of the teasers and trailers. Perhaps they’re extended family or old family friends who knew Guy’s, we won’t know yet.

This bond I feel will be the prime focus of the film and conflict as well. [and no, not in the love triangle way concerning Dawn, there’s already an interview disproving that!]

“It seems from the trailer that Kelly Marie Tran’s Dawn and Emma Stone’s Eep hit it off immediately…” There’s definitely a lane that is driven a lot in romantic comedy type things where the new girl is the cause of jealousy. With Eep and Guy, when this other girl comes into the picture it would have been easy to go, “Oh, she could be the romantic rival.” We made the purposeful decision to not go down that lane.

However I do think his friendship with Dawn will be something as a compare/contrast with how Eep treats her. Both are doing what they feel is better and right for the sheltered girl, with Eep wanting to take Dawn outside the wall and Guy getting upset when he finds out Eep took her out.

He’s obviously going to catch them and lecture Eep about this. Now, how does Eep feel about Guy’s shift?

At first, I really think she supports him on connecting with the Bettermans and all the stuff he wants to do. Guy is quirky, he’s inventive, and likes to push the mold in what he can change to make life easier on himself and the people he loves. This place is his Utopia and considering the exchange she has with Grug over “a little change isn’t the end of the world”, she probably is willing to give the farm a chance because she knows Guy has been feeling lost and probably the butt of the joke lately [least where Grug is involved]

We also know Eep loves to try new things, she just in general loves new. Its what attracted her to Guy and even after it all, still loves Guy. 

However, this is what I believe is going to be the start of the conflict between Eep and Guy too. Guy starts to change too much and Guy being Guy probably doesn’t realize it. She starts seeing the farm as another cave, another place to hide and seeing Guy thriving here probably makes her feel worried about what this means for them as a couple. That wall like Eep said is Dawn’s cave, and Guy probably doesn’t think of it that way after a lifetime of danger and being on the run from The End. Also the private bedroom probably helps

Anyway, what was I saying?

also something I noticed was when they first arraive in the elevator you got Guy looking at Eep to see her reaction to this place. He’s obviously hoping she’s finding the Bettermans has amazing as he is.

and just look how happy he looks seeing Eep isn’t going to freak out at Dawn I guess??? lol 

Just “these two worlds are melding nicely”

However something I think is going to happen as the premises of the movie is both families settling their différences aside/celebrating them, is that somewhere along the line as Eep and Guy get closer to Dawn, there’s going to be a shift. The Bettermans perhaps act uppity with the Croods since they are cavemen and deemed less intelligent, so you got Guy stuck in the middle with his two found families trying to co-exist [also Eep too, bc her friendship with Dawn is obviously a major plot thread of the film]

Eep takes Dawn out for a joyride and the two bring in danger that followed them there.

“What’s on the other side of the wall?”

also totally predicting some kind of reveal that makes Guy have a temporary fall out with Phil, I don’t know why but its just a vibe I’m getting. Phil looks scared and Guy looks pretty pissed off while asking about the wall. That or he says something about the Croods themselves he feels is too far, I mean, Guy looks rather uncomfortable here as Phil says “We’re an evolved people” pretty smugly. 

“Phil those are my future in-laws, stop”

He’s also seated on their side of the table, keep note of that with the Croods on the other. There’s going to be a sense torn between both worlds going on for Guy in this film, at least I think so. And its going to challenge him and how he cares for Eep and the Croods. 

Leading into Eep and the Croods.

The big bad shows up, wrecks some shit and abducts everyone, at least it seems like it here.

“The only way to survive is if the pack stays together”, this whole adventure reminds Guy of his place in the Croods family and gives Eep and Grug a better understanding of what Guy is feeling/going through.

People loved The Croods, and they’d been trying to make another one… but it’s a high bar. I can say this because I didn’t work on [the first film], it’s a beautiful movie. It’s funny, and it’s about family. I was like, “I want to see the continuation of where we left off with these characters.” Especially with the father/daughter aspect of the first one, and going, “Now that Grug has accepted Guy into his pack, and has this great relationship with his daughter, where do they go from there?”

Something tells me Guy and Eep have their big blow up somewhere around Rafikzilla shows up, and after getting separated, Guy has a heart to heart with Grug about Eep and just their strained relationship in general. They patch things up, and together with Phil go forth to kick some monkey ass. And they reunite and things are okay again. Blah, blah, blah. Wow this got weak near the end, um but this interview sums it up pretty good for me tho.

“Was it always the idea to introduce a second family?” Yeah, that was there in my first pitch. You have the Croods come across another family, the Bettermans, who are a more evolved family, and these two families couldn’t be more different. The Croods lead with their heart, and the Bettermans lead with their brain. Of course, there’s conflict, they face challenges, but they learn to appreciate each other’s differences – not just to live with each other’s differences but to almost celebrate them. There’s a lot going on. There’s a lot of characters in this one. There’s a lot of wonderful, powerful themes. But it’s a ridiculous comedy too.

Basically, Guy is having a midlife crisis at the age of 19 and gets his shit together, Eep gets a better understanding of her boyfriend, and Grug finally backs tf off so we can get Croods 3 where Eep and Guy have a kid :U also I’ve been calling A New Age the “Shrek 2″ of the Croods in terms of how the story seems to be shaping up with Guy, Eep and the two families, I’m hoping I’m right because that would be some delicious development to see.

[sombreboy]

Love Maze »21

Previous  » Next Series Masterlist ▎ 18+ ▎ pairing: Taehyung x Jungkook ▎ genre: School AU, crack humor, smut, angst, ETL, slow burn, fluff. ▎ word count: 9.1k ▎ ch.warnings: profanity, light angst, fluff, discussion of unhealthy drinking habits (be responsible<3), phonesex/facetime sex, masturbation, dirty talk, tae sucks jk off in yoongi's car (don't tell yoongi)

Co-writer: @velvetwicebang​​​​​​​ ♡♡♡

A few months had passed, and Taehyung was finally done with High School. He’d been living with Jungkook during that time, and honestly? It was one of the best decisions he’s ever made. The elder was nervous at first; walking around his boyfriend’s apartment in his tippy toes— like a stranger would. Something about it being ‘official’ made it hard to chew. However, It didn't take long before Taehyung really treated the place like his own.

Spitting loud profanities when he’d lost at a game? Check. Walking around in only his boxers? Check.

Walking around butt-naked? Also check. He felt at peace, which wasn’t something he could say he’s ever experienced at his old place. His father took it.. well, he didn’t know how he’d taken it. The man barely ever wore any expressions on his face, trying to figure him out was nearly impossible. Daejung’s last words stuck with him, ‘You’re going to regret choosing that lifestyle, Taehyung. Moving in with your.. your boyfriend? That’s sick.’ It was at that moment Taehyung knew he had to get out of there. And to think there was a hint of guilt left.. Fuck it, it was about time he put his goddamn happiness first.

“Should I pack the blue shirt or the black one?” Sadly, good things almost always come to an end. Even if it was temporary, Tae could feel the sadness creeping up on him. Months away from his boyfriend sounded like pure torture. Taehyung was nineteen now, and he’d decided to attend college in America. The elder always joked that he was one year wiser, but maybe that was simply a facade to hide his inner fears. He was scared to move to a different country, scared to leave behind the only person who understood him. But if he wanted a better life for the both of them, he’d have to work hard to earn a stable job. Maybe being a businessman was his.. thing. At the moment, he felt no attraction towards it, but maybe as time went on he’d learn to fall in love with the career.. “Or should I pack both.” Here he was, packing the night before as expected, rushing through things.

“Kook, don’t be sad.” The younger’s silence was deafening. “Think of all the phone sex we’re gonna have, we haven’t done that before.” Taehyung pushed aside his internal conflict about which stupid shirt to pack, moving closer to his boyfriend to loop his arms around the boy’s waist. “Hey.. we’ll FaceTime. I know it’s not the same thing, but it’s better than nothing..”

Jungkook's melancholic expression brightened slightly at Taehyung's way of trying to lighten the mood. ''It does sound pretty hot...'' He tried to play along to rid himself of the emotions that swirled in his chest. Kook didn't want Taehyung to leave to begin with, but he hadn't actively tried to stop him. What kind of boyfriend would he be if he told him to stay simply for the reason that he wanted him close? He couldn't be selfish. ''You better call me often.'' Kook scrunched his nose, wrapping his arms around Tae's neck to draw their faces closer, allowing the younger to litter kisses all over his boyfriends face. ''And don't let any cute americans steal you from me.''

“You don’t have to worry about that.” Taehyung’s face scrunched up at the little kisses, playfully trying to wriggle away from Jungkook’s lock. “I’ll pick you over them any day.” After pressing a chaste kiss to the corner of his boyfriend’s lips, Tae held out both shirts.

“Now, which one?”

~

“Babe, why are they here again?” It was nine in the morning, and Taehyung was quietly muttering those words into Jungkook’s ear. “I just wanted to say bye to yo—“

“I’ve never been in an airport before! Woah.” Hoseok’s wide eyes lit up as bright as the sun, palms pressed flat onto the big window as he watched an airplane take off into the air, gaze glued on it until the clouds engulfed it whole.

“It’s really nothing special..”

“Yoongi, shut the fuck up. Let me enjoy it.”

Tae turned to look back at his boyfriend, stifling a small, amused smile. Maybe he’d miss these guys a bit... And girl. Turns out, Jisoo wasn’t too bad. Namjoon and her have been officially dating for a few months now, and he’d moved in with her as well. Both couples spent a lot of time with one another, and naturally, Taehyung grew fond of her. Whatever happened between Jungkook and the woman, that was in the past. Their noona was head over heels for Joon, her loving stares said that much.

“You sure you got everything?” Jin pestered for the millionth time, earning himself the millionth nod of the head from Taehyung. “Yes, hyung. I’m sure.”

Jungkook relished in the bickering between his hyungs and his boyfriend while it lasted, but the anxiety kept coming back to him every single time he glanced over at the clock.. Time had never passed as quickly as it did until now. When the group finally had given their proper cheers and kind goodbyes, they allowed for Jungkook to finally get some space with Taehyung.. And honestly, it kind of hurt even more that way. He didn't want him to leave. Every single thing they did together, and suddenly they both had to spend their daily lives apart. Well, aside from their upcoming virtual relationship. ''Ah, shit...'' Jungkook raised his eyebrows high, staring up at the ceiling to prevent his eyes from tearing up. It didn't work that well, instead they glazed over as he looked back down at his boyfriend, reaching out to grab the elders hands in his, forcing him to let go of his baggage for the moment. He wasn't sure what to say, and he for sure knew if he tried-- he'd just start crying. But he had to say something. ''Do your best...'' Kook scrunched his nose as he smiled through the stray tears that were forcing themselves down his cheeks. ''And be safe.. and eat enough.. I heard their burgers are fuckin' good there.'' He rambled on, wishing time would slow down further.

The more Jungkook spoke, the more it crumbled down Taehyung’s composed front little by little. “Yeah,” He laughed weakly, a single tear shamelessly cascading down his face until Tae wiped it away with the back of his hand. “I’ll uhm.. I’ll eat a lot of burgers.” He too looked up at the ceiling, his eyes stung. His throat closed in, his chest felt heavy.. It hurt to say goodbye. “Come here.” His voice trembled as Taehyung pulled his boyfriend in for one last hug, hiding his face in Jungkook’s neck while he squeezed him tight. The elder’s hands grasped onto the fabric of the younger’s shirt, body beginning to quiver as he suddenly found it impossible to hold back his emotions. “I miss you already..” Taehyung murmured, harshly biting down on his lip to stop it from trembling. “I love you so much, remember that.”

Jungkook took a deep, shaky breath to keep himself together. It was so hard not to break down and cry right then and there, but he managed to stay somewhat collected. However, tears were given at a moment like this. "I love you." Kook murmured as he buried his nose in Tae's hair, wrapping one arm tightly around his boyfriends waist while the other reached to rub his neck. "Time will fly by, you'll be back before you know it." His words were comforting, and he wasn't entirely sure if they were meant for Taehyung or for himself. Possibly both. And it did work... a little bit. Unfortunately, the time came where they had to part, Jungkook practically forcing himself to let go of Taehyung. He wiped the elders tears away with his thumbs before kissing his cheeks, as if his lips were the remedy to make them stop from trickling down. "See you soon."

The group slowly came closer once more, waving Taehyung goodbye along with Jungkook, all of them huddled together to keep the youngest together as he clamped down on his trembling lower lip. When his eyes met Tae's, he couldn't help but smile. A wide, toothy grin shining through despite his cheeks being glossy with his tears, exaggerated waves coming from all of them-- but most of all, Jungkook.

“Jungkookie, he’ll be back before you know it.” Jisoo smiled, moving away from under Namjoon’s arm to soothingly smooth her hand across Kook’s back, taking notice of how taut his posture was under her touch. The rest of the gang nodded, adding in their words of encouragement.

“You’ll see each other soon! Now.. let’s eat! I’m fucking starving!”

~

Time did fly by indeed, and Taehyung kept in contact with his boyfriend, ringing him up whenever he could. The time difference oftentimes made it challenging, but they rose above the obstacles trying to keep them divided. Tae spoke to Kook about anything and everything, ranging from newfound friends, to how his English sucked ass, and if American burgers lived up to the hype. Turns out, they were alright. He’d also tell him how much he missed him, and sometimes, his roommate Jayson would pop in to say ‘hi’. They knew about the younger— maybe too much, as Taehyung didn’t keep him a secret, all of his inner insecurities were left in the past. There were lonely nights where he would more often than not wish he could hold Jungkook to sleep, play with his boyfriend’s hands, run his fingers through his long hair; but it wasn’t the reality he hoped for ...Not for long.

In just a few more days, Tae gets back in a plane. Excited was an understatement, he couldn’t wait to go back home, even if it was just for a week. Like most nights, Taehyung stayed up really late to catch a glimpse of Jungkook in the mornings. They’d planned to talk today, and there was no way his urge to sleep was going to get in the way of that. With his phone in his eager hands, Tae clicked on his boyfriend’s profile, running a hand through his hair whilst he waited for Jungkook to pick up his FaceTime call.

In the beginning, being away from Taehyung was absolute hell. There was no other way to describe it, Kook was sure of it. He had to brush his teeth by himself, beat the boss on this new game all alone, and the vacant spot in his bed was all too obvious. But with time, it became a bit easier, especially with his friends occasionally checking in on him at the beginning. But as time passed, their visits became less frequent. They all did have jobs after all.

Jobs.

Jungkook had been hunting for one of those for what felt like forever, but it was probably months, without any luck whatsoever. It was harder than he thought, and it was so frustrating. What was he supposed to tell his boyfriend?

"Shit, how did I forget..." Jungkook mused as he held his phone up, looking at the sweet contact photo that lit up. He was slouched down on his couch, his even longer curls hanging past his eyes as he moved his hair behind his ears to display the new earrings he'd gotten, two silver hoops in each ear. "Hey babe~" Kook wishes he didn't have those previous 'drown your sorrows' drinks before the call, the half slur obvious in his speech.. this habit was easy to break whenever he wanted to, surely. Him having a drink every now and then to relax was harmless, right?. But he didn't care about specifics now, he was just happy to see his boyfriend. Now, the one specific Kook didn't pay attention to, was that he was drunk early in the morning. He hadn't even slept yet. "Babyyy... miss you."

Every time, Taehyung swore he felt his heart skip a beat when Jungkook’s face showed up on the screen. But unlike usual, his boyfriend appeared less.. vibrant. Even with the shitty internet connection, the eyebags underneath Jungkook’s sullen eyes were clear. Was he not getting enough sleep? ‘Shit, am I calling too early in the mornings?’

The slur in the younger’s voice heightened Taehyung’s worries, who in response brought his phone closer to his face, as if he could further inspect Kook’s situation thousands of miles away. Was he drunk..? “Jungkook-ah.. are you okay?” He seemed out of it, his tangled hair appeared as if he’d ran his fingers through it countless times, pondering about something. Jungkook looked like a hot mess, and not just a ‘I’ve just woken up’ kind. “I— I miss you too, baby. Are you taking care of yourself, though?”

"Yes, 'm good," Kook only spoke a half truth. He was feeling pretty good at the moment, but generally? It was tough as shit. "I just miss you a lot..." Jungkook squinted slightly to focus on the face on his phone screen, a small smile on his lips as he attempted to avoid any discussion deeper than surface level. "You look pretty, baby~ oh! Look at this, I got new e-earrings." Kook brought the camera closer as he showed them off, the reddened hue in his eyes more obvious at this point.

If anyone could tell the symptoms of a drunk, it would be Taehyung. “Cool, new earrings, pretty. Kook, have you been drinking?” Taehyung’s brain couldn’t push it aside any further, it scared the hell out of him to see Jungkook this way. He had to watch his father turn into a drunk after his mother’s death, Tae only hoped his boyfriend was a lot smarter than the man, not relying on alcohol to momentarily solve life’s hurdles. But.. maybe this was a one time thing. Somehow, that option eased Tae’s visible distress. J ungkook wasn’t one to get drunk on the daily, this must be new. “Kook, baby, your earrings are really pretty. I just.. is there a reason why you’re drunk so early in the morning?”

Jungkook scrunched his nose, not even half satisfied with the unenthusiastic response to his new jewelry. Understandable though, he was very unlike his normal self. Well, the self he showed Taehyung. Truth is, Kook had turned to the bottles more frequently as of late due to the constant rejection of finding a job. Life was boring and draining all at once. All he did was work out, hunt for a job, and drink. Occasionally, he'd sit down and draw during these nights-- wondering just how many Taehyung inspired doodles he'd jotted down. "I'm just a bit drunk from last night still, I uh.." he ran his hand through his hair once more, tongue quickly rolling against the inside of his cheek. "Long day yesterday, and a long night.. couldn't sleep." Even if he didn't say specifics, it was still a partial truth once more. He didn't want Tae to worry.. and Kook felt too embarrassed to admit he'd been this unlucky. Who would've thought that not having a proper education would affect you this bad? Well, Jungkook definitely knew.

Taehyung did worry. It was in him to overly worry about his boyfriend’s well being, to constantly ask himself how he was doing, if he was scraping by with the little money he had saved up— if Jungkook was okay. “Hey, you know you can always tell me what’s up, right..? Even if it’s late over here, or if you just need someone to listen to you, I dunno, vent about how much you suck at beating bosses without me. Call me.” Tae meekly sighed, the worry having yet to diminish from his furrowed eyes. “I’m your boyfriend, I wanna listen to everything you have to say no matter how long your day or night was. I’ll listen to every bit of it.”

Jungkook wasn't expecting his eyes to glaze over with a layer of his tears at the words, his doe eyes growing in size as he stared at the man on his screen with nothing but his intoxicated affection. What was he thinking... Maybe he should just be honest. ''Okay,'' he took a quiet breath. ''Today I went to six different places that were hiring... All blatantly just rejected me. And it sucked.'' He chuckled sourly. ''But.. it's fine, it won't last for long.'' He's said this many times before, for months at end. He just hoped soon, luck would be on his side. ''Anyway... can we just talk about you, please? I can't wait to see you..''

“Oh, Kook..” Verbally, Taehyung didn’t know where to start. If he was there, he’d smother Jungkook in kisses, hug him securely until his arms became numb, or walk over to the fridge to fetch him banana milk. Those always seemed to make him feel better, no matter how small. But now that Taehyung was oceans away, he had to rely on his words. That scared the shit out of him; he’s never been quite the ‘motivational’ speaker. “Yeah, I mean, it won’t last long. Those people are dumbasses for letting someone as hardworking and kind like you slip by.” Tae smiled at the camera, “It’ll get better, don’t worry.” Growing tired of laying on his stomach, Taehyung flipped himself around. He stretched his arms out to give his boyfriend a broader view. The faint scar on his forehead was visible now that he laid on his back, but they were both used to it by now. “I can’t wait to see you either. Just a few more days, baby, and we can make up for all of the kisses and sex we missed out on~” The elder sang, thankful his roommate couldn’t understand what he was saying. “No but really, I just.. I can’t wait to hold you. I’ve had to hug my damn pillow to sleep.” Taehyung turned to look at the other man in the room, bringing the phone closer to his lips as if what he was going to tell Jungkook was a secret. “Jayson doesn’t like my snoring like you do.”

“I heard my name!” A pillow came flying at Tae’s face, who just laughed as he aimed it back at him, the urge to sleep no longer knocking at his door.

Jungkook's smile grew, his front teeth on full display on the screen as he chuckled until his shoulders were shaking. ''Yeah, we have a lot of catching up to do...'' He took a deep breath, eyes fixed on the boxy smile on his boyfriend. ''I really miss touching you, kissing you... everything.'' Kook wiggled his eyebrows, running his fingers through his long hair, knowing Tae loves the look of it. ''Ah, just the thought makes me hot.'' Well, and the alcohol still streaming through his veins that amplified his sudden shift in mood. Taehyung might not be the best talker-- but he surely did enough to distract the younger from his troubles by replacing one thought with another.

Figuring it would transcend past their language barrier, Taehyung flipped Jayson off before he discarded the pillow and turned his back to the dramatically offended man. Dedicating his attention to his phone once again, Tae’s fingers swam through his messy hair to fix the damage. A cheeky smile tugged at his lips when he saw Jungkook do the same. “You know what that does to me..” His hair’s gotten so long, it was hot. Really hot. Those earrings fit him nicely, too. “You know what else is hot?” The elder wiggled his brows, building up the unnecessary suspense just for the hell of it. “Me. I’m sweating in here, it’s like they don’t have any air conditioner or something.”

"Well, I know a solution," Jungkook brought the camera closer to his face, wiggling his eyebrows right back at his boyfriend. "but sadly you have a roommate..." he clicked his tongue. "I really want to see you..." Knowing Taehyung would get the hint, Kook leaned back on his couch as he allowed a small hiccup to escape his lips. He really had no shame, and was the alcohol to blame? Only partially, he mused. He'd become less and less embarrassed by things. It was just fun. Especially to keep one hand on his phone, while the other slowly palmed himself through his sweatpants, not allowing Tae to see any of it-- just the light twitches in the youngers eyebrows along with the soft, barely audible sigh that Taehyung knew too well.

“Fuck, Jungkook..” Taehyung bit down on his lip, sneaking a rushed glance over his shoulder. Shit, Jayson was still up; and if he continued to be heavily immersed into that book, it’d be a hell of a while before he goes to sleep. Tae was in no position to have virtual sex with his boyfriend, and Jungkook was purposely dangling a carrot in front of his face, taunting him. “You’re a brat, you know.” The elder nearly let out a grunt at the peek of the younger’s hand, moving vigorously whilst the camera shook slightly. “Making your boyfriend hard so late at night, tsk.” Taehyung’s hips rocked slightly, feeling his cock awaken with every twitch in Jungkook’s blissful face. “Goddamnit— uh, I’ll be going out,” He spoke to his roommate in broken English, throwing on his slippers and coming close to falling down face first onto the ground. Taehyung caught himself, though, rushing out of his dorm in a hurry. The elder pushed on the door to a vacant stairway, leaning his back against the wall. The light was dimmed, but it was enough to see what was going on. “You’re already seeing me baby, you gotta be more specific.” He picked up where they left off, deep voice hushed as he was afraid he’d wake someone up. "What do you wanna see, babe?” One hand snuck down past the waistband of his pants, welcomed by the warmth in his briefs as he toyed with his own cock, rubbing circles onto the swollen head.

Jungkook slouched down further on the couch, half laying down as he pulled his turgid length out to give it a proper stroke, drawing out a quiet groan from his own throat. "Wanna see your dick, babe..." his lips were swelling into a plush pout with the way he kept tugging at them with his teeth, the screen shaking more as he jerked himself off with more vigor. "Wanna see me too? I'm already so wet for you.." Kook didn't wait for a reply before he pressed the button to switch to his back camera, making a show out of the way his veiny hand held his swollen cock in a firm grip. He was practically dripping in precum, the glistening shine amplifying the red hue of his tip. "See what you do to me? Shit, I can't wait for you to come back."

“Oh fuck...” Taehyung’s ragged breathing reached the other line, touching himself to the lewd image on the screen while spreading his precum along the thick girth. “I wanna feel you.” What he’d do to fuck himself on Jungkook’s fat cock; his entrance clenched tightly at the thought. Frustrated, the elder whipped his big dick out. He gasped once it accidentally smacked against the screen, the wet sound too noticeable to ignore. “I don’t know what I want more, baby. To slam into your tight ass until you’re screaming my name, or to ride the shit out of you until I’m crying from how strong you are..” Taehyung lowered the phone to proudly show off his erection, throwing his head back against the wall as he put his hand to work. Soft, raspy moans emitted from his throat as more precum oozed out of him, some dripping down to the floor.

"We will do both when you're back, for sure-- oh my god, you're so fucking hot.." Jungkook flipped the camera again, angling so that Tae was able to see Kooks face and cock in one from above, the constant slick sounds of their hands and groans echoing from both of the boys' speakers. Actually, it was quite surprising. Jungkook wasn't that into the idea of cybersex at first, which made the first time a bit awkward when they tried. But the more they did it-- which was as often as possible, Jungkook had discovered that he was quite the filthy mouth. He loved seeing Taehyung's reactions to the dirty talk that Jungkook provided; and it surely did the same to him.

His boyfriend’s far from stable voice paired with the way his own cock twitched in his slick hand had Taehyung grunting, even moaning at the image on his screen. This came naturally for Jungkook, and it drove the elder insane. “Shit, a-are you close?” He followed after him, displaying his throbbing cock and face at once. The sounds of his sore hand sliding easily across his length were clearer than ever, and Taehyung didn’t know how much longer he’d last if they kept this up. “Baby, ‘m gonna cum..” Desperately trying to get himself to let go of the ledge, Tae picked up the pace, not caring that his moans were uncontrollably loud.

''Yes, cum babe-- I'm so close too.. fuck, I want you so bad,'' Jungkook nods hurriedly, the glistening sweat on his forehead catching strings of his dark curls to stick to his skin. ''I wish I could cum all over your face, your body, s-shit, shit...'' He moaned, throwing his head back to display his strained neck, swallowing tightly as he stroked himself at a brutal pace, feeling his thigh muscles tense up. His hips were bucking up into his hand, eyes completely transfixed on his boyfriend until a dragged out, throaty moan echoed in Taehyung's speaker. Several ropes of cum gushed from Kook's swollen tip, some dribbling down to his hand, some pooling at his stomach. " Fuck, I'm cumming so much--Tae...'' He closed his eyes, the phone shaking in his hold as he kept stroking himself until he was completely emptied.

“Wanna feel you cum inside of me..” Taehyung tugged at his lower lip with his teeth, trying to silence the very moans that could get him caught. “A-ah, fuck..” The second he hazily saw his boyfriend crumble down to a pathetic mess, was the moment his own orgasm drew out a deep, drained cry of alleviation. Strings of cum burst onto his front camera, his screen, and the floor underneath him. “Cum baby, shit that’s hot..” Taehyung’s slick hand soon came to a bumpy halt, instead focusing on catching his lost breaths. He opened his lust-invaded eyes a few seconds later, the darkness within them slowly vanishing to its hiding spot. The elder wiped away the cum off his phone, now able to see Jungkook’s worn out state more clearly. “You look hot as fuck with those earrings, Kook.” Taehyung quietly whimpered as he tucked himself back in, grimacing slightly at the sticky cum latching on to his hand. “I wanna see them dangle next time I’m under you.” Despite his lewd words, a content sigh led to a pleased smile. Shit, Tae really needed an outlet of some sort to let out some steam, and this was the perfect solution. Classes were stressful as fuck, and his calls with Jungkook always made him feel better. “Love you. Really wish I wasn’t saying that to your dick right now.” Tae lazily smirked, unable to see Kook’s face past the pole on the screen.

Jungkook's breathy laugh echoed in the room, bringing the phone up to his face that was a satisfied mess, curls sticking to his skin and every other direction. "I'll get longer earrings for you then.. I love you more." He carelessly wiped his sticky hand on the fabric of his pants before a yawn emitted from his lips. "I'm getting sleepy... I really wish you were here. Can't wait to see you." He pouted towards the camera, "I imagine you would jump into my arms at the airport, I'll carry you home." With that in mind, the little doe eyed boy was anything but small by now. His muscle mass had kept growing while Tae was gone, and by now he knew that his boyfriend would swoon even harder with the way he always loved the younger's strength.

“I’ll be home soon, Kook.” The elder smiled, wishing he was there to brush away the curls clinging to Jungkook’s forehead. “I will hold you to that. From how tired I’ll be, you might just have to carry me home.”

~

Taehyung had been counting down the days he’d be able to see Jungkook in person again— to jump into his boyfriend’s arms like Kook had envisioned. The anticipated day seemed like it’d never come, but when it was finally time for him to board on a plane back home, Tae was ecstatic! The thirteen hour flight was quick to tear down his initial enthusiasm, but knowing Jungkook would be waiting for him at the finish line was enough of a boost to get him going. Hours flew by with him eating, staring blankly at the seat ahead, sleeping, and repeating. It’d become kind of a routine by now.. Taehyung was struggling to stay awake throughout the last few minutes, but the moment the voice on the speaker announced they’d landed safely, Tae’s eyes shot wide open. He was back home, to Jungkook. The elder hadn’t seen his boyfriend in months, which naturally felt like years on his end.

Once he’d gotten checked in and found his luggage, Taehyung practically speed-walked to the area that had Kook waiting for him. His heart was pounding. It almost felt like he was back in their school’s common room, anxiously rocking on his feet as he craned his neck, searching for those doe eyes among the crowd. There were other couples that were reunited; a girl jumped into a man’s arms, some held out big ‘Welcome Back!’ signs, and others had bouquets of flowers meant for the other person. Taehyung didn’t care about any of that, he just wanted to hug the shit out of his boyfriend. Maybe even kiss him in front of all these people..

~

Jungkook was anxious, the last couple hours of waiting was absolutely dreadful. Back home, he'd rushed around to clean up at the last minute for his boyfriend's arrival. Luckily, he'd gotten his drivers license done with the amount of free time he'd gotten lately. After endless begging for the fact that Kook wanted to go by himself, he was allowed to borrow Yoongi's not so new, new crappy car. Finally, the moment Jungkook had been longing for arrived as he stood behind the crowd, anxiously shifting his weight between his feet. The very second he saw the flow of people coming through the gate of the flight Taehyung was on, his doe eyes searched for the face he's been missing every single second for months on end.

"Taehyung!" Kook chirped out through the crowd as he scuffed through when he pointed out his person. The butterflies practically exploding in his chest was overwhelming, his entire body moving on it's own towards Tae with large arms reaching out for him along with the brightest toothy smile on his lips.

“Jungk— woah, hey there.” Before Taehyung had any time to register the direction of where his name came from, he looked ahead only to see his boyfriend practically lunging himself at him. “Baby, you’re loud.” Tae softly chuckled, not wasting any time before neglecting his luggage, instead wrapping his arms tight around the younger’s waist. Fuck, he’d missed him so much.. The mild scent of his clothes, his soft locks, everything ranging from big to small. “Shit, I-I missed you. A lot.” Taehyung pulled away to cup Jungkook’s pretty face in between his hands, his faint smile morphed into a boxy grin before he took a big leap of faith and molded their lips together. The elder led the kiss, slow and steady, not worried about the ruckus of people surrounding them. Taehyung was just happy to be back home, and he was going to show it the only way he knew how.

Jungkook's arms wrapped around Taehyung's smaller back to pull him back in, he craved to feel their chests pressing together once more as he had to hold back with every fibre of his being not to devour Taehyung whole. It was a sweet moment, yes, but Jungkook had been starved of the physical affection he's so fond of for months. Softly, he kissed his boyfriend back, but the desperation behind the way he kept going back in for more was evident. ''I missed you too, so much.'' The younger finally said when their kiss came to an end, pulling back just enough to be able to look at each other. Taehyung looked so good, a bit more tan than when he'd left. His face looked fuller, like he'd gained a little bit of weight, and his hair had grown-- just like his own. Tae looked so different, yet he was exactly the same. ''You look pretty.'' Kook scrunched his nose, leaning in to kiss the small mole on his boyfriend's nose, ''You must be so tired. Wanna get out of here?''

As fast as lightning, Taehyung’s head bobbed in agreement. All he’d done was sit in a plane, yet every inch of him was longing for a nap. Turns out, airplane seats weren’t the most comfortable. “How did you get here, by the way. Did one of the guys give you a ride?” The elder spoke too soon, one of his brows arched in question when he saw Jungkook unlock the doors of a car he’s never seen before. “Kook... what’s this?” He chuckled. His boyfriend’s never told him he’d learned how to drive. Still confused, Taehyung threw his light baggage into the trunk of the car, walking around to situate himself on the passenger’s seat. This felt.. odd. Tae was used to being the one who drove them places. Seeing Jungkook in the driver’s seat was new, to say the least. He’d gotten used to it, though. The few minutes he’d seen Jungkook driving with one strong hand on the wheel, the veins in his forearm sticking out. The way his brows furrowed in utter concentration..

Fuck.

It was a lie, Taehyung wasn’t used to it. It’d gotten to a point where Tae couldn’t take staring anymore, his drowsiness replaced with lust. “Pull over.” He ordered in his deep voice, squeezing Jungkook’s thigh. “I’m gonna suck your dick.” It was straightforward, but the elder wasn’t going to beat around the bush anymore.

Jungkook's lips parted in a light gasp when he felt Taehyung's firm grip on his thigh, glancing over at his boyfriend with raised eyebrows. ''R-right now?'' From the look in Taehyung's eyes, that seemed to be the case, the urgency in them non negotiable. They were half way home, but the lust stirring in both of them had them both too impatient. Kook pulled over and parked in a more secluded area by a simple gas station, not much people around as it was rather late. Jungkook turned the engine off before turning to properly look at Taehyung, snapping his seatbelt off within the same motion. ''Missed me that bad?'' He smiled coyly, leaning back in his seat to spread his legs a bit, showing off the already half hard erection that remained hidden underneath his pants.

“Mhm.” Taehyung thrusted his seatbelt to the side, placing one hand on each of Jungkook’s thighs as he leveled himself down in front of the younger, on his knees like a good boy. Gazing up at him through his eyelashes, Tae took his time when dragging down his boyfriend’s zipper with his teeth, holding a show despite their eagerness. “You learned how to drive?” His rough hand snuck into Jungkook’s boxers, the corner of his lips twitching up into a sly smirk once he’d finally gotten to feel Kook’s cock. The last few months of cybersex had him foaming at the mouth. He was always left pleased, but not as pleased as he could’ve been. The elder wanted more than to simply see Jungkook’s dick on the screen, no, he needed to touch. “You look so hot driving, babe..” Taehyung excitedly pulled out Jungkook’s hardened shaft, eyes twinkling with a sea of mischief. “So fucking hot.. shit.” He pressed a chaste kiss onto the tip. “Look at you, learning how to drive so you could pick up your boyfriend at the airport.” Tae stamped another open mouthed kiss on the swollen head, his fingers curling tighter around the base. “Missed this cock so fucking much..” He left a trail of wet kisses along the sides, running his tongue along the veins that traveled within the soft skin.

"Yeah, wanted to pick you up myself..." Kook nodded, his breath quickly getting heavier with each second watching Tae get to work that passed. "Missed your mouth so much, Tae.." Jungkooks gaze was fixed on the show that Taehyung was putting on for him, unable to hold back his audible sighs in pleasure. He could tell that Tae missed him, or rather; feel it. The needy look in his eyes told him that much, and kook's eyes mirrored it a thousand fold. "Fuck, yes... put it in your mouth babe, please..." The tease drove him mad way too quickly, the patience thrown out the window the moment Taehyung got on his knees. All Jungkook could think about was to feel his cock wrapped in the wet, fleshy warmth of his boyfriend's mouth.

The elder did as he was told— after teasing Jungkook some more; licking and squeezing at the rigid, sensitive skin. Then, Tae supposed enough was enough. Even he was getting awfully impatient. “Hmm~” The vibrations of his echoing hums spread flat along Jungkook’s cock, same as his tongue while Taehyung slowly bobbed his head, stroking the rest of what he couldn’t fit in his mouth. His other hand snuck underneath Jungkook’s shirt, feeling around the tight muscles he’d once dreamed of touching when he was away. Now, it was his reality. The elder’s soft inhales clashed against his boyfriend’s pubic region with every backward gliding motion, followed by noticeable exhales alongside every downward drag. He loved taking his time with this man, every twitch of his dick was to die for.

"Ah, fuck that feels good..." More than good, it felt fucking amazing. Jungkook had no restraint regarding any attempt to hold his throaty moans back, loudly exclaiming the pleasure Taehyung's mouth put him through. "I love you, I love your mouth.. shit i missed it so much." He hastily murmured between ragged breaths, one hand running through the dark locks hanging freely on Tae's head, gently keeping his hair tangled between his fingers. Kook hadn't felt this sensation in such a long time that he almost forgot how amazing it was compared to his own hand, his cock already growing to full size inside of Taes mouth, twitching desperately as well as profusely coating his boyfriend's tongue with precum.

Whether it was the soreness building up in his jaw, how challenging it was to breathe with every dip of his head, or the simple hunger for the taste of Jungkook’s burst of cum; Taehyung was dead set on alleviating his boyfriend free of the pent up energy he had stored throughout his body— especially his dick. He could feel Kook’s cock twitching, as if the attention it was getting was beginning to be too much. It drove Tae to suck him off faster, harder, sloppier. His eyes glistened over with a layer of unshed tears, the relentless deep-throating finally taking its toll on him. “Hmm..!” He looked up at his boyfriend, practically begging him to cum with one desperate gaze. Taehyung longed to taste the salty yet faintly sweet flavor of Jungkook’s load, hoping it would quench the dryness in his abused throat.

Jungkook's jaw hung open in awe, the eyes meeting his own from below looking desperately needy for his cum. Fuck, it was so hot; Kook knew he was unable to hold it any longer than this. Besides, there was really no need to, the elder was more than ready to be rewarded for his hard work. "Gonna cum, gonna cum, oh god...." Jungkook's words were shaking just like his entire body, the hand in Taehyung's hair tightening the grip to bring him down on his cock simultaneously with the way the younger bucked his hips upwards. Only a few more thrusts were needed before Jungkook's hips stuttered, thighs tensing up as his cum gushed out of his throbbing length to fill up Taehyung's mouth. "Tae, fuuuck yes...." he hissed with a throaty groan, leaning his head back as he licked his chapped lips.

Taehyung’s eyes widened at the sudden gush of cum, the blurry pair gradually coming down to their original, hooded shape once his tongue had gotten familiar with the taste. It was just as he remembered; tangy with a hint of sweet. He pulled away from Jungkook’s glistening cock with a ‘pop’, staring up at the younger as he willingly swallowed the rest of his warm load. Tae’s tongue swiped over his swollen lips, claiming the last bit of cum that lingered around the corners. Noticing that Jungkook’s dick was still oozing with delicious cum, he leaned back in to wrap his plush lips around the tip, cheeks profusely adorned with a hue of red as his wet tongue circled around the head; giving it a proper cleanup.

A soft, content sigh emitted from Jungkook, hips twitching slightly when Tae cleans up his sensitive cock from the aftermath of his orgasm. "Wow.." is all he could muster to say, that was probably the best oral he's ever received ever. Scrap that, it definitely was the best. Kook glanced down at his boyfriend as the haze of lust slowly dispersed, the doe eyes filled with affection replacing it. He loosens his grip in Taes hair to comb his fingers through it, down to caress his cheek. "I love you." His small smile grew, "so much. Get up here and let me kiss you."

The elder wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, finishing tucking Jungkook back in before he rose up from his knees, straddling his boyfriend’s lap. It was a tight space, but he liked it that way. All Taehyung wanted was to spend a week glued onto Jungkook’s side, knowing he’d regret it if he hadn’t spent every waking second with his favorite person. He only had a week, after all. Tae was going to make sure it was the best week yet. “I love you more.” He moved his slightly swollen lips against Jungkook’s chapped ones, wrapping his arms tight around the younger’s neck to bring him even closer, feeling the rhythmic pattern of their warm chests rise and fall against one another. This was something he missed, a lot. Taehyung withdrew from their gentle kiss after his breathing turned scarce, slender fingers lightly fidgeting with the silver hoops in Kook’s ears. “Is this your car? It’s almost as shitty as mine.”

"It's Yoongi's, I can't afford a car.." Jungkook chuckled, the undertone of his words a bit sour. He really wanted one of his own, but finding a job had been a shitty experience thus far. Losing hope was an understatement, but it wasn't gone. "I like your car more." He adds with a wider smile as he leans in closer, placing small kisses along Taes jaw to soothe the light aching from all the sucking he'd done. "Ready to go home?" Kook asks as he's practically holding Taehyung like he had no intention of letting go, contradicting his every word. He wanted to tell his boyfriend close for the entire week; itll suck to be alone for a second time, so every single second together matters.

Considering Yoongi lived close to their apartment, Taehyung insisted they hand the boy back his car (before they dirty it even more). Tae still couldn’t believe he sucked his boyfriend off in someone else’s car. It wasn’t the ideal setting, but Yoongi didn’t have to know.. Walking wouldn’t be a problem, Taehyung didn’t have an awful lot of baggage to carry— two, actually. He’d missed the familiarity of the streets; the small Noodle Shop owned by an older lady, a questionable tattoo parlor right around the corner, and the delicious aroma of fried food. He’d missed everything about his home; America was good.. but it wasn’t the same.

“Taehyung, dude, you there?” Yoongi’s deep voice snapped him out of it. Confused, Tae blinked a couple of times before he advanced back to reality. “I said,” The eldest crossed his arms, “you guys didn’t fuck or anything in my car, right?”

The look on Taehyung’s face was one of pure horror, as if he’d just seen a ghost right through Yoongi’s narrowed eyes. Or worse, as if he’d just been told that strawberries ceased to exist anymore.

“Wha— dude, no! That’s..” He cleared his throat, sneaking an ‘oh shit, we’re fucked’ side glance at Jungkook. “That’s g-gross.”

The mint-haired male found his anguish amusing. “Tae, calm down. I was just joking, I know you guys are classier than that or whatever.” A faint laugh slipped past his lips. Taehyung’s tense shoulders gradually fell down to their natural, less strained position. “Ah, of course. I knew that, we’re extremely classy when it comes to our sex spots. The classiest.” Now it was Taehyung’s turn to be amused, and a bit relieved. Still chuckling under his breath, Yoongi mindlessly waved the boys off before disappearing into his home, clueless about the truth.. Taehyung didn’t feel that guilty.

“Shit, that was close.” He turned to look at Jungkook, breaking out into a cheeky grin from the jittery rush of it all. “Come on, let’s get out of here before he realizes.” With that being said, Tae’s hand latched onto his boyfriend’s before he led them both to their home.

"Yeah!" Jungkook chimes while he interlocks his fingers with Taehyungs, keeping their palms tightly pressed together as they head home. The familiar surroundings seemed to amaze Tae, the look in his eyes one of wonder and awe. "Welcome back home, baby." Jungkook sang out as he unlocked the familiar door, the light creak noise it made as it opened a sound they've both heard at least a million times. He held the door open for Tae, ushering him to get inside his newly deep cleaned apartment.

“Woah, Kook.. you cleaned.” Taehyung muttered as though that was a big shock. And it was, a little bit. Their apartment looked brand new, definitely less cluttered than when he left.. He let go of his luggage, stuffing his large hands into his pockets before taking a tranquil stroll around the place, indulging himself in the overly familiar sight of it all. They made a lot of memories here, and walking back into such space after a long time was revitalizing for his soul. Maybe Taehyung had grown up, but damn did he miss it. It didn’t compare to the place he’d been staying at for the last few months. With a lopsided smile, Tae turned to face Jungkook, walking towards him with outstretched arms. “Angel, first the driving and now cleaning? You’re the best.” The elder leaned in to press a quick kiss onto Kook’s puckered lips, ignoring the fact that it sounded as if they were an old, married couple.

“Hello! Welcome back!” Taehyung craned his neck to the side, seeing three dear faces peek past the open doorway. Of course.

“Taehyung-ah, you look so tan and healthy! Like freshly baked bread.” Jisoo happily exclaimed, inviting herself in to hug Tae, tiptoeing to her full potential. It was weird how much their feelings towards one another changed during the span of a few months, but it was for the best. Jisoo was his friend’s girlfriend, and his boyfriend’s close friend, Taehyung had to toughen up.

“Yeah, I guess you could say that.” He laughed, withdrawing from her hug to shake Joon’s hand, leaning down slightly to kiss Yuna’s chubby cheek. Oh yeah, the elder wasn’t extremely afraid of babies anymore. The little girl had grown on him.

“So come on, are you fluent in English now or what?” Namjoon joked, the dimples in his cheeks sinking deeper when he leaned in for a proper hug, careful to not squish Yuna in between them.

“A little bit.” Tae responded in the little English he knew, smirking when they’d seemed impressed. The pair definitely knew how to amp up his confidence.

“Jungkookie, are you thrilled?” Jisoo grinned, playfully nudging her shoulder against his.

''I barely slept, I was too excited to pick him up.'' Jungkook's bunny-like grin grew as he reached out to pull Taehyung closer once more, hugging him from behind. He placed his chin on the elders shoulder, squeezing his arms around him. ''But worth.''

''You guys wanna do something tomorrow? Like, get dinner or something.'' Namjoon suddenly asks, he'd missed seeing the two boys together. ''We could bring the group together, they've missed this.'' He gestured over the younger boys tightly squeezed together, his dimpled smile growing as he glanced over at Jisoo; who hurriedly nodded in agreement.

''Hmm..'' Jungkook had missed out on having a good meal for a while. His hands found Taehyung's fiddling with his long fingers between his own. ''I bet you've missed korean food, I'm down to go.''

“Fuck— missed is an understatement, Kook.” Taehyung uncomfortably twisted his neck to look at his boyfriend, further flaunting his excitement with the obvious glint in his eyes.

“Language, Tae. We have virgin ears in the room.” Namjoon scolded, pointing down at a perplexed Yuna. She looked as if she’d just woken up from a nap.

“Ah, forgot.” Taehyung unlatched himself from Jungkook’s hold, extending out his arms towards the little girl in Joon’s protective hold.

“You’ve gotten heavy, Yuna.” Tae noted, “Uncle Tae will have to come by more often so I don’t miss out on too much.” He’d missed everyone; Tae wanted to catch up, figure out what’s been going on with their busy lives. How's it going with Hoseok and his longtime girlfriend; is she still saving herself for marriage?

Jin. The latter wanted to open up his own bakery shop; is that still his plan?

What happened to Jimin and that crush of his? Did he finally make a move like he’s been meaning to?

Lastly, Yoongi. Now that Taehyung thought about it.. the elder never really spoke about his ambitions.. Who knew what went on in his hyung’s head half the time. Catching up over dinner sounded like the perfect place to ask him what he’d been meaning to do after high school.

“Great! Then it’s a plan.” Jisoo smiled, clasping her hands in complete enthusiasm. Namjoon and Jisoo waved their temporary goodbyes after finalizing tomorrow's plan. Jungkook closed and locked the door behind them before turning and approaching Taehyung once more, reaching out to brush his long curls out of his eyes.

''Are you hungry? It's pretty late, but... You've only survived on airplane food for the past twelve hours.'' He shrugged. ''I don't have much, as usual, but I do have some leftover lunch boxes from Jisoo..'' He inched closer to get a good look at Tae's face, the long hours of travelling evident in the dark circles adorning his eyes. ''It's bulgogi and rice... It's de-li-cious.''

“It sounds de-li-cious,” Taehyung cutely mocked his boyfriend’s singsong voice, pulling away to stroll into the small kitchen. “I’ll heat up one plate for the both of us. I’m not too hungry.” The elder reached to pull on the fridge door’s handle, crouching down to look for the food, but instead he was faced with various bottles of alcohol. There was beer, wine, rum— a bit of everything. “Uh, baby? Why’s there so much alcohol in our fridge?” Taehyung tried to play off his mild concern with a lighthearted chuckle, mind suddenly racing back to his boyfriend’s drunken state in one of their FaceTime calls. “There’s like, nothing else to drink.” He looked up at Jungkook from his crouched position, facial expression becoming serious.

Ah. That. Shit.

''Yeah, uh...'' Jungkook stood by the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest, not sure what to say to his defence. The expression on Taehyung's face said enough, he wasn't pleased at all; and with all rights, Kook knew he wasn't fond of alcohol in the same way. ''It's nothing, I just drink sometimes.'' He shrugged, hoping it would be enough. What young adult doesn't drink these days, right? ''There's probably a soda in there.'' He approached the fridge, digging through the clinking bottles to pull out a coca cola bottle made of glass, wiggling it in front of his boyfriend. He used his foot to quickly close the fridge, hoping he'd let it go.

Taehyung gently swatted the coca cola bottle away from his face, contemplating opening the fridge door once again but he simply straightened his posture, now at the same eye level with Jungkook. He’d already seen enough. “Sometimes? Kook, booze is basically all you have in there.” Tae didn’t care if his boyfriend drank. Hell, even he enjoyed the wonders of alcohol once in a while. But this fridge.. it looked an awful lot like the one back home. “Just.. promise me you’re drinking responsibly? That’s all I wanna know.” He sounded like such a dad, but Taehyung wanted nothing more than to protect Jungkook at this moment. Alcoholism was a touchy subject for him, and Tae hoped he wouldn’t get to see his boyfriend fall down the same hole he’d seen another man get sucked into in the past.

Jungkook felt the guilt welling up in his gut at the worry in Taehyung's eyes, the grip around the cola bottle tightening slightly. Truth was, he did drink more often than he probably would ever admit to, but he was not going to tell his boyfriend that. He didn't want to cause another worry, he was just going to be here for one week-- and he'd like their time together to be happy moments only. ''I promise.'' Kook clearly said, trying his best to keep his face straight. He decided he wouldn't drink at all during this-- maybe even quit completely. Couldn't be that hard, right? ''Don't worry. I'm not out of control.''

“Good.” Taehyung had no other option but to trust him; Jungkook’s never lied to him before. If his boyfriend was starting to form an unhealthy drinking habit, Kook would tell him in a heartbeat. Taehyung was confident he didn’t have anything to worry about, if the youngest promised, then he had no reason to doubt him.

“Alright, let’s eat something before heading to bed then. I’m tired.”

© sombreboy 2020. Do not repost, edit or translate.