#maybe this is pretty obvious but i literally just hadn't thought about it like that before even once

[brinstar-real-estate]

yknow, I'd seen people say things to the effect of "The Ladies Who Lunch is kind of an odd song in Company, every other song is about romantic relationships and this one song is randomly about upper-middle class new york women as a species" and I'd just kinda gone "huh yeah that is weird," and like, you read Finishing The Hat (the book not the song) and Sondheim talks about how he wrote the song and the character of Joanne specifically for Elaine Stritch, and not about how the song fits into Company as a whole, so you say "ok he made this song for Elaine Stritch and that's why it doesn't really fit with the rest of the show" but like... it DOES fit. I realized why just tonight while listening to it.

The start of the song is Joanne sarcastically tearing into her peers for their silly little routines and foolish little lives, and then she turns her scathing eye on herself: "and here's to the girls who just watch / aren't they the best / when they get depressed it's a bottle of scotch / plus a little jest / another chance to disapprove / another brilliant zinger / another reason not to move / another vodka stinger" (emphasis mine). This is so clearly about Bobby. The whole show up to this point, he's been watching other people's relationships, drawing his own conclusions and reasons why he can't commit emotionally. Even as he dates people and desperately asks Amy to marry him, he's remaining emotionally distant, stagnant, while all his friends let themselves marry and grow in and out of relationships. Similarly, Joanne is detached from the society she critiques in her song. The point that The Ladies Who Lunch gets to by the end is that Joanne is not a neutral third party, she's not above it all, and her sitting back and laughing at these ladies is worthy of the same scorn she gives their trivial worries. And as a fellow outsider, she can understand Bobby more than his other friends, and she's in the unique position to push him towards understanding that his passivity and tight grip on his heart have consequences, and that playing it safe and non-committal in love will keep him from forming the deep emotional connection he craves. and I think that's pretty neat. Joanne is a cool character

[captainsophiestark]

Miscommunication

Kol Mikaelson x Reader

Masterlist - Join My Taglist!

Written for my personal fic writing challenge for 2024, Sophie's Year of Fic! Featuring a new fic being posted every Friday, all year long :)

Fandom: The Vampire Diaries/The Originals

Summary: You've finally worked up the courage to ask Kol on a date, but with all the people who've been trying to kill him lately, he jumps to the wrong conclusion about what's being asked of him. Set right after TVD "A View To A Kill", if Jeremy didn't succeed in killing Kol.

Word Count: 2,517

Category: Fluff, Humor

Putting work into an AI program without permission is illegal. You do not have my permission. Do not do it.

"Hello, love. I wasn't expecting to get a call from you."

I grinned at the voice of the youngest Mikaelson brother coming through the other end of the phone. I'd met him at the Grill a few weeks ago, and we'd pretty much immediately hit it off. I'd been trying to work up the courage to ask him out ever since, and after overhearing his siblings talking about how close he'd come to dying recently, I'd decided to stop wasting time and just give him a call.

"Hi Kol. Uh, I know this is kind of out of the blue, but... well, I wanted to see if you wanted to maybe get together at some point and... talk. Hang out. All that... stuff..."

I grimaced. I'd never done this before, and it was probably painfully obvious, especially to a vampire with a literal thousand years of experience.

"You want to get together and talk?" asked Kol, a lilt to his voice that I couldn't quite decipher. Everything in me screamed that I should bail out, but I grit my teeth and forced myself to toughen up.

"Yeah. If that's something you'd want to do."

"Oh, it very much is." My heart stopped. I'd been sure this call was about to be a total fumble, but apparently, somehow it'd worked? "What did you have in mind?"

"Uh..." I mentally kicked myself. I'd spent so much time trying to work up the nerve to actually call him, I hadn't thought at all about what I would do if he actually said yes. "Well, I don't know. Is there anywhere you'd especially like to meet up? Or anything you'd like to do?"

"How about your house?" The doorbell rang. "Right now?"

My brain short circuited. He was here? Now? I wasn't ready at all! The house was fairly clean, and I didn't look like a total mess, but I also wasn't ready for a date! And wasn't a first date supposed to be about thirty degrees more chill and removed, like a going to a movie or dinner or something?

I forced myself to take a deep breath. Yes, this was technically a first date, but Kol and I had interacted before. We were friendly, maybe even friends. It's not like he was some stranger I was about to let into my home.

"Uh, sure. Now is... now is good. I take it you're the one at my door?"

"Yes I am, darling."

"Okay. Well, then... I guess I'll see you in a second."

I hung up the phone before I could make any more of a fool of myself, paused at the mirror in the hallway to quickly adjust my outfit, then strode confidently to the front door. If I pretended to be confident, it would probably rub off and turn into the real thing, right?

I swung open my door to find a grinning Kol on the other side, one arm raised and resting against the doorframe. My heart did a little backflip at that, and I just hoped his vampire senses hadn't clued him in on it.

"Well? Aren't you going to invite me in?"

"Oh! Right, yeah, come on in, Kol."

He grinned at me as he slowly, deliberately put one foot over the threshold, then the other. He paused once he officially stood in my house, facing me with a look like he expected me to have some kind of reaction. I just gave him a smile.

"Welcome in. Uh, I'll be honest, I wasn't really prepared for you to come over, like, now. But we can make some drinks, maybe play a board game or something? I actually think I have an at-home dart board buried somewhere around here if you want to get your ass kicked like you did the first time we met."

Kol huffed a laugh, a smaller, more genuine smile pulling onto his face as he shook his head at me.

"Well, now we have to play, don't we? I can't let my honor be tarnished without fighting back."

"I think it only counts as tarnishing your honor if it's not true," I mused as I led Kol into the kitchen, incredibly aware of how closely he followed behind me. If vampires could hear heart beats, then I was well and truly screwed.

"Exactly. I didn't get my ass kicked in darts, so what you said wasn't true."

I paused long enough to give Kol a judgey look over my shoulder, then walked around to the cabinets behind the kitchen island.

"Alright, I'll go dig out the dartboard in a minute, but let's figure out drinks first. I'll be honest, I'm not the best bartender, but I'll see what I can do."

"Here, let me. I'm an excellent bartender."

Kol reached for the bottles in my hand, but I paused, holding them slightly away from him. He leaned into me, and my heart did its stupid jumping jacks again, although I ignored it. Instead, I fixed Kol with another look.

"Are you an excellent bartender in the way you're an excellent dart player? Or are you actually an excellent bartender?"

Kol shook his head, an edged smile spread on his face as he reached across me and took the bottles from my hands. I was more than a little disappointed when he pulled away.

"Alright, I'm going to make us some drinks while you go and get that dart board, right now. We're going to settle this, once and for all."

"I'm still not totally sure that I actually have it," I reminded him, walking backwards out of the kitchen. Kol just hummed, shooting me one last look as he got to work on the drinks before I turned the corner.

As soon as I was out of his sight, I paused to take a few deep breaths. I was starting to feel seriously giddy hanging out with him like this, and I needed to calm the hell down. It was a casual first date, after all. I didn't need to get ahead of myself.

Once the butterflies in my chest had settled down a bit, I walked the rest of the way to the hall closet, or what I thought of as my junk closet. It was packed with things that were just useful or sentimental enough that I didn't want to throw them away, but that basically never came in handy on a regular basis. If that dartboard someone had gotten me for my birthday a few years ago was anywhere, it would be here.

I dug through a few boxes I thought might be likely candidates, trying to remember where past me might've put things last time I'd organized everything. Finally, after what felt like way too much searching, I found it at the bottom of a box on a higher shelf. Even better, a bag with all the darts still together was with it.

I grinned, doing a little triumphant fist pump to myself before turning to head out of the closet. In the doorway, however, I found Kol hovering, watching me intently, a menacing air about him that hadn't been there earlier.

"Hey... what are you doing?" I asked. He raised an eyebrow at me and crossed his arms.

"Me? I was about to ask you the same thing, darling. It really took you that long to find the dart board?"

I furrowed my eyebrows at him, watching for any clues as to what the hell he was doing before briefly glancing away to check the time my phone. Honestly, it hadn't even been that long.

"I mean, yes? Have you looked around this closet at all since you got here? It's a mess. How long have you been standing there, anyway?"

"I'm not an idiot, sweetheart," he said instead of answering me, taking another step forward. I narrowed my eyes at him. "I know you're back here messaging your little friends, trying to set up another ambush for me after the first one didn't work. I know how you Mystic Falls people like to operate."

My frown deepened. "Kol, what the hell are you talking about?"

"Don't play innocent with me, darling, it won't work. So who have you been texting?"

"No one, other than you! I knew you were acting weird on the phone, and when you first showed up. I thought my nerves were just getting the better of me, but apparently not."

"Nerves for what? Don't tell me Jeremy's going to come bursting through the door playing Van Helsing again."

"Jeremy who, Kol? Seriously, I have no idea what you're talking about."

For the first time since he'd appeared in the closet doorway, Kol seemed to believe me. His look changed from borderline threatening to almost as confused as my own.

"Jeremy Gilbert."

I paused, trying to place the name. It sounded familiar, but it took me a little while to figure out why.

"That's... Elena Gilbert's little brother? Right?"

"Yes. You're actually trying to tell me you don't know him?"

I scoffed. "Kol, of course I don't know him. I graduated from high school when he was still in middle school. I barely remember him or his sister."

He studied me, eyes scanning my face, apparently looking for some sign of a lie. I just watched him back, waiting on some kind of explanation for this to make sense.

"So you're not working with Elena and her little group of friends, then? Or either of the Salvatores?"

"No, Kol. Working with them on what?"

"You're not lying."

"I know I'm not lying! Now what the hell are you talking about?"

Kol sighed, slumping back against the doorframe a little, the tension easing out of his body although he still looked a little confused. I could relate.

"Elena and Jeremy tried to kill me not too long ago," he said, as if he was saying they'd asked him for directions on the street. "Elena tried to keep me busy by lying about wanting to discuss a truce with me. I assumed this was a terrible second attempt at the same thing."

I sighed, shaking my head and closing my eyes for a beat as I leaned against the shelf behind me. I knew he was a vampire, and I'd even known someone had tried to kill him recently. But somehow, I'd underestimated the level of ridiculous drama and miscommunication that would likely create.

"Yikes. Well... I'm glad you survived, and I can honestly tell you that I'm not a part of any plot to try to kill you. I can't even remember the last time I talked to Elena, and the only time I've ever talked to either of the Salvatores was when Damon was drunk and hit on me at the Grill."

Kol snorted. "Sounds familiar."

"I'm sure."

The two of us stayed put, neither moving to stand up or leave the closet, neither speaking either. The silence just hung, and I had no idea what I was supposed to do next, so it was a relief when Kol leaned forward, the menace in his posture gone and replaced by tentative curiosity.

"You know, this leaves us with a very important question."

"And what's that?"

"If you weren't trying to drive a stake through my heart... why did you call me and ask to meet up?"

And just like that, the relief was replaced with sheer nervous panic.

"Uh... well..."

Kol grinned and took a few steps towards me.

"You said you wanted to get together and talk," he said, a teasing tone to his voice that made my heart speed up at the same time that it made me want to give him a shove. "What exactly did you want to talk about, if not murdering me?"

I shook my head, trying and failing to keep a smile off my face. Kol was well and truly in my space now, standing right in front of me, one arm over my head and leaning against the shelf behind me. Based on the grin he gave me when I met his eyes, I got the feeling he could hear my heart racing.

"I... Well, I was trying to ask you on a date."

"Were you now?" asked Kol, his shit eating grin doubling in size. I huffed.

"Yes. And it took a lot of effort to work up the courage to actually go through with it, so if you're just messing with me right now with the whole leaning into my space and flirting thing, I might actually join Team Try To Kill Kol."

Kol just laughed and shook his head, leaning in a little bit further as he did. I couldn't help a subconscious glance at his lips, and with the way they curled up even further, I knew he'd noticed.

"I'd never dream of messing with you about this, darling. Honestly, this is the best news I've gotten in days. If I hadn't been working to keep a few different people from killing me, I would've asked you out a week ago."

I grinned. "Really?"

"Absolutely."

I huffed a happy, disbelieving laugh as Kol leaned the rest of the way in, his lips finding mine. Fireworks exploded in my chest at the sensation, especially as he wrapped one arm around my waist and pulled me closer to him. My hands found his shoulders, holding on tightly, and when I finally pulled away after a few long, long moments, I was a little breathless and a little dizzy.

"Now that was worth thinking I was about to be vampire-slayed," said Kol, grinning at me before starting to lean in again. I laughed, but put a hand to his chest to stop him.

"I agree, but this is still a first date. I want to actually talk to you and get to know you beyond the few conversations we've had at the Grill, not just make out in my closet."

"You didn't like making out in the closet?"

"I didn't say that." Kol grinned, and I gave him an exasperated smile of my own. "I like this, Kol, a lot. But I could've just kept flirting at you with the Grill if all I wanted was to make out with you. Dates are supposed to be... a little more than that, at least to me."

Kol sighed, bringing his hand up to cup my chin and running his thumb across my lips before stepping back. My heart was doing backflips, and from the smirk on his face, I knew he could tell.

"Alright then, darling. I'll give your version of a date a try. As much as I like making out in closets, it might be nice to just talk to you for a bit, too."

I beamed at him. "Good. Although, it doesn't have to be all talk." I retrieved the dartboard that had been shoved back onto a shelf when Kol had first gotten in my space and held it up. "We have a few things to settle, after all."

"Oh yes we do. Come on love, our drinks are waiting in the kitchen. You're going to need one, so you have something to blame your loss on later tonight."

"Keep talking, Twilight. It's just gonna make it that much sweeter when I win."

****************

Everything Taglist: @rosecentury @kmc1989

TVD/TO Taglist: @elenavampire21

[fluffylino]

you show minho and hyunjin that they don't need their husbands.

(literally got this idea while showering.)

(boypussy les go and threesome?)

-contains mature themes

"you feel hurt, don't you. doesn't my baby deserve so much better"

hyunjin is leaning into your hand thats cradling his face. his eyes are glassy and filled with so much love. he nods slowly.

"you work so hard, take care of channie and do most of the work at home...and what do you get in return" you state.

its obvious. hyunjin's husband is cheating.

"lets forget about him, yeah" your hands are on his hips. making him grind down on you.

"f-feels good" he mumbles, blinking his tears away. hips rolling in circles on your strap.

"i know baby. how long has it been?" you ask, noticing how his breathing was already becoming heavier.

"three years" and you feel your heart break.

three years without any relief. no touching. no pleasing. no source of pleasure. and hyunjin is crying again. shoulders shaking.

you thrust up hard. hitting that spot inside that has him doubling over himself.

"ahhh-hhm" mouth forming an 'o' shape. fingers balling the fabric of your shirt.

"princesses deserves to be fucked like royalty"

you say, bringing your hand up to wipe the tears on his cheeks. moving lower to thumb as his sensitive nubs.

"m'princess?"

its asked so innocently. you're ready to give him the world. more than ready to knock out his husband. the next statement being high pitched whines.

"yeah baby..yeah" your voice cracking at how truly pretty hyunjin was. bouncing on your dick. shoulder length hair moving around. his arms hooked around your neck.

so you slip your hand down. pressing it to his swollen clit. and he keens.

squirming when you rub at him in a way that makes his orgasm speed up.

"please, c-can i? please p-please mmh-" he's begging. holding out till you give him your permission.

what a good boy, you thought. you wanted to make him yours. and he wanted to be yours.

"cream all over doll"

and he's cumming. melting into you. no longer able to hold himself up. you help him ride it out. not pulling out. instead letting him stick close to you.

"w-want you as my...wife" he mumbles, lifting his head up. moaning when you cup his face.

kissing him with an intensity that makes his heart race. 

.

.

"stop being a fucking brat" minho yells harshly. getting up to walk towards the other. hyunjin throws the book on the floor, standing up.

"you probably slept with jisung" he says. poking a finger at minho.

"Never. and you. you kept flirting with seungmin" 

snapping you out of your thoughts. you take off your headphones. realising that if you hadn't at that moment, the two of them would have started to fight physically.

"go fuck yourself!" is what hyunjin shouts back, storming into another room.

maybe it was a bad idea to bring them both here. to your apartment.

"yeah ill fuck you instead" and that sends a sinful thought in your mind.

what if.

just what if. sex was the solution.

to bring them closer. to make them forget about their husbands. instead make them grow closer.

and realise.

"minho please" you ask, straddling him to keep him from running away. he refuses to look you in the eye. "hyunjin is going through a lot right now-"

"so am i. its always hyunjin this hyunjin that. what about me"

"listen to me." your tone is firm. one thing you hate is getting cut off midway while talking. and minho shuts up. because he knows.

"eat him out" in any other situation you'd be laughing at his expression. he looked like one of those bewildered kittens. his immediate response is a no. and there is a couple minutes of silence before.

"w-why?" he asks. but you don't feel like explaining. so you ask him to trust you fully on this.

when you walk into the room. hyunjin is sulking in the pillows. face completely hidden.

.

"aah" minho huffs out, as hyunjin bucks his hips at his teasing. tongue laving into his warm cunt.

filthy lewd sounds filling your ears. you stand behind minho. sliding your fingers into him. taking him by surprise.

"bet your husbands were never this good"

its a casual statement. but the reaction it gives you is enough. the realisation setting in. the compromising positions. the fact that they were doing this.

"the two of you are beautiful. just tainted by this horrible world"

minho whines when you take your digits out. and hyunjin starts tearing up again. 

you're ready to comfort him but minho is quicker. moving away to clamber over him. holding his shaky hand.

"don't cry doll shhh" gently pushing his hair away from his face.

hyunjin is taken aback by the sudden kind gesture.

minho and him were always a bit...awkward. and there was always this lingering tension between them.

And when they found you. it had strengthened. you had made them realise they were loved. they deserved to be loved. they loved you. and you loved them. regardless of everything they were going through.

.

.

.

and maybe you end up fucking hyunjin in doggy style.

overstimulating his tight little pussy while he's gasping and struggling to eat out his beloved minho.

.

.

[gguk-n]

Chapter 2- Unspoken Yearning

Accelerating Emotions (Oscar Piastri x Reader)

Series Masterlist

Summary- Oscar is becoming painfully obvious that he loves Y/N. Even Lando is sick and tired of him. Y/N's having some weird feelings. She's always been clumsy but these strange occurrences have her heart beating really fast.

Y/N was busy talking to her brothers and Oscar's sisters when she heard that familiar voice. He sounded much more older and mature. She turned around to look at the boy who was sounding a lot like a man and maybe he looked older too, she thought. Their eyes met and she smiled at Oscar. She hadn't seen him in ages; he sounded more mature, even hot if it wasn't weird to call her brother's friend hot, he had lost his cute cheeks that she loved pinching, his hair was just as fluffy as it used to be and the closer she got, she realised he had grown quite tall, almost half a foot taller then her. "Hi Oscar" she greeted him with her hand out; Oscar's eyes were wide and he was staring at her. She looked beautiful in the midi skirt and top she paired with a cardigan since the weather was cooler lately. Her eyes were still as warm as he remembered, her nails were neatly manicured. "Is something on my face?" she asked now self conscious. "Nothing" Lando answered, "I'm Lando" he added. "I know, I'm Y/N, a friend of Oscar's" she said. "Oscar never told me his friend was this pretty" Lando said. Oscar saw Y/N tuck her hair behind her ear while a blush graced her cheeks. "Everyone's here Oscar, you should go meet 'em" she called out as Lando walked away with Y/N.

Oscar walked towards the group to greet everyone while he could see his best friend shaking his head. "Why are you shaking your head?" Oscar asked. "Nothing, it looks like Y/N might ask Lando out if he compliments her one more time" Ansel pointed out. Oscar couldn't let that happen, he hurriedly walked towards the pair, "umm....Y/N...Ansel was calling for you and Lando we need to go see the engineers, they asked to come at this time" Oscar said looking at his watch, dragging Lando away. What a close call Oscar thought. Y/N walked back, looking visibly confused when Ansel denied ever calling her.

Oscar was starting the race at P16. It was like the good old days when Oscar used to kart; his cheerleaders were all present to cheer him on for the first time in a really long time. This was a special race for Oscar, since it was his home race. He ended the race in points for the first time in his Formula One career. He couldn't have asked for a more momentous feat. He was so excited getting out of the car. After the weigh-in, interviews and celebrations; Oscar was back in the hospitality greeted by his family. Everyone congratulated him and you could hear the cheering and hooting coming from the group.

Both the families were headed out to dinner to celebrate Oscar's first points in Formula One. Some how, Oscar likes to thank God who was looking down on him, maybe he pitied him but right now, Y/N was sat next to Oscar, he could feel her leg brush past his as she tried to pour herself a glass of water. She handed Oscar a glass too, "Loosen up, Champ" she whispered patting his shoulder. Oscar tried to relax but he literally couldn't, not when she was sat next to him. After exchanging life updates and ordering their food, everyone was talking amongst each other leaving Oscar to talk to the person next to him. He was about to open his mouth but Y/N beat him to it, "Why'd you tell me Ansel called back when I was talking to Lando? I was gonna ask him for his number" she told Oscar. That's exactly why. "I didn't know that. But I really thought he had called you. Anyways how's work?" Oscar asked trying to change the topic. "It's been great. I used to wrangle the 6 of you, I think I can handle pre-school children" she told him. "I helped you wrangle them" Oscar interjected. "Debatable" she said. "I always helped" he tried to reason. "Honestly, you listened to me the best. So, yeah, you did help" she replied thoughfully. Oscar felt like she was talking to him like one of her students. "You're talking down to me" Oscar whined. "God, you still as cute as before" she said ruffling his hair. "I'm not cute" Oscar groaned. "Sure sweetheart, whatever you say" she chided. But Oscar's cheeks were heating up, Y/N had never called him sweetheart even to tease him, he could get used to this, he thought.

The dinner ended with Nicole asking Oscar to drop Y/N off at home since she had come with them. Oscar didn't mind getting to spend some alone time, or so he thought. Poor Oscar was sweating bullets as the AC was blasting in the car. Y/N raised her hand to his forehead at the signal; "Do you have a fever?" she asked. "No" Oscar replied pushing her hand away. "You're sweating a lot" she said now taking a handkerchief out to dab his forehead. "You sure?" she asked again. Oscar caught hold of her hand and brought it down from his face, now looking into her eyes. "I'm not sick and stop treating me like a kid Y/N. I'm almost 22 in 4 days" he remarked. Y/N felt weird, the eye contact, his hand on her wrist and the way he was looking at her. "Sorry" she apologised and freed herself from his grasp and turned to face ahead before Oscar released the clutch to move the car.

The rest of the drive home was quite, Y/N's mind was everywhere; the whole while she stole glances at Oscar and his veiny arms, she quickly caught herself. Y/N had a whole internal monologue going on; 'I've been single for over a year. I've not felt the touch of a man in so long. I've not been dicked down either. I'm probably ovulating. There's no way in hell do I find that scrawny pale boy hot' she reasoned. She got out of the car, greeted Oscar good-bye. Oscar just smiled, "Won't you invite me for tea or coffee?" "It's almost 10, you won't be able to sleep if you drink coffee" she reasoned. "It's rude not to invite your guest in" Oscar expressed. "You're not my guest" she began but as she saw a pout form on Oscar's face; "You know what, I have some Jasmine tea. Come on" she offered. Oscar smiled so big, the street light seemed dim.

The two entered the flat, Y/N throwing her stuff on the sofa. Oscar started walking around looking at all the decorations and pictures on the wall until one caught his eye, a picture of Oscar and Y/N, no one else. "You have a picture of me" Oscar pointed out, holding the photo with a smile. "Yeah, I didn't have any with you other than that. I have pictures with everyone here" Y/N said while heating up the tea. Oscar took a picture of the photo frame; this might have made his day more than the points today. Y/N was busy putting stuff away when she knocked over the hot kettle, tipping all of its content on her hand. "FUCK" she screamed as the boiling hot liquid made contact with her hand. Oscar blotted from the living room into the kitchen on hearing the commotion. "That's gonna leave a mark" he said while quickly turning the tap on and placing her hand under cold running water. "You should be more careful." he told her. "that's gotta hurt" Oscar mumbled to himself. Y/N was staring at Oscar, her hand didn't seem to burn as much under the water but Oscar's hand were warm and big; one of his hand was enough to wrap both her hands, his eyebrows had creased in concentrating, had he always been like this? After a while Y/N slowly took her hands our from the running water, "I'll be fine Oscar. Stuff happens" she told him. "I'll make the tea, go and take a seat. You have ice in the freezer, right" he asked. She nodded at him and Oscar grabbed a cloth and bunched up a few ice cubes and placed it on her burnt hand.

Oscar made the Jasmine Tea with a few instructions from Y/N and the two sat in silence drinking the tea while Oscar placed one hand on the make shift ice pack. Oscar cleared the cups and offered to buy her medicines. "I'm fine Oscar. You should go." she said. "I just feel bad about leaving you alone" he expressed. "I can manage. Don't worry about me. Spend some time with your family" she told him pushing him towards the door. "Do you not like having me around?" Oscar pouted. "You're a joy to have around, more than my own brothers some times, but your parents miss you. Spend some time with them. Okay?" she said. "You're talking to me like I'm a toddler" Oscar whined. "I'm talking to you like your best friend's sister" she stated. "Are we not friends?" he asked. Y/N sighed, "yes, we are friends Oscar. I'm saying this as your friend, spend time with your family. They miss you." she clarified. Oscar smiled. "I don't want us to be friends for long" he mumbled exiting the house. Before she could ask Oscar what he meant by that, he had vanished.

On Oscar's birthday, everyone had come over and he had the biggest celebration he had in a while. The cake was from the local bakery that Y/N had picked out. Oscar doesn't remember what everyone got him but he remembers what Y/N got him and it was a hand knit sweater with a 'happy birthday Mr 22 years old' note which made Oscar laugh. When Ansel saw the sweater, "You got the better one, mate. I've been receiving all of her prototypes" he said. "She made this?" Oscar asked. "Yup, she's been knitting people gifts since she became obsessed with knitting. Reminds me of my grandma honestly" Ansel replied. Oscar was going to cherish this gift for the rest of his life. This was gonna be the family heirloom he passed on.

Oscar didn't get to spend as much time with Y/N as he hoped since she was busy with work. But something had changed in him; he wanted to be hers. Ansel left for university since he had taken a few days off to see his best friend race. Oscar was now stuck with his family for the next few days; Y/N would pop in to help his mum around the house and Oscar would only see parts of her because some how in his house, she was the busiest person. She would leave soon, saying something about her mum needed her home too. On the day before Oscar was supposed to leave, Y/N came over and was stood on the step ladder changing the bulb. Oscar was walking by when he saw the step ladder wobble and Y/N lost her footing. Thankfully Oscar was there to catch her; "Are you okay?" Oscar asked worry written all over his face. Y/N on the other hand, her heart was beating really fast, probably from the fall. Oscar's chest was firm and warm, he was toned, she thought. His arms were strong, he was literally carrying her. She gulped hard before nodding. "Why would you do this alone?" Oscar asked annoyed. "I usually do this alone" she replied barely above a whisper. "What if you got hurt?" Oscar groaned. Was he always this hot angry? Y/N thought. Her priorities were truly in a very strange place. "Please don't do anything that would get you hurt" Oscar begged. "Oscar, you drive F1 cars for a living. I was just changing the bulb. I should be the one saying that to you. Now if you'll put me down, lemme clean this mess." she stated. "No" was all he said before carrying her away from the broken glass of the bulb and cleaned the place and also changed the bulb.

Oscar was back to racing. But this time, no matter what he did, he couldn't forget about Y/N. He couldn't stop wondering if she was okay or if she got hurt. Not like he could call her every day and ask. So, Lando now had to deal with a pouty Oscar who would only ask the most random questions like do you think you can hurt yourself if you trip on something? the answer was yes. Or do you think you can cut yourself while cooking? also yes. Or are there any household chores you wouldn't risk hurting yourself? sadly the answer was no. Lando was so confused, he felt like he had an annoying toddler following him around suddenly. Everything started to make sense when he saw Oscar staring at a picture on Instagram. On close inspection, Lando realised it was Y/N, Oscar's best friend Ansel's sister. His teammate was a goner, Lando thought patting his shoulder. "Mate, stop staring. You'll burn holes through your phone" Lando chuckled. "I'm not staring" Oscar said while scrolling away. "Sure" Lando began, "I finally get all the weird questions you've been asking me" Lando finished. "What do you mean?" Oscar asked. "You're worried about someone rather someone special?" Lando teased.

Lando was good at making people crack or was Oscar itching to talk to someone about his love for Y/N, we will never know. It was like a dam broke inside Oscar who started talking about Y/N morning, evening, day and night. Lando was getting sick of it; he wasn't sure how many more weekends he would last before he told Y/N that Oscar was in love with her. In their driver's room or their hotel rooms, late at night, as Lando's eyes would be closing from the tiring day they had; Oscar would be describing in painful detail how Y/N's hair looked in different seasons of the year. Lando was sure not even documentaries put him to sleep faster than Oscar did. One night, annoyed and tired, Lando interrupted Oscar, "Just tell her already mate. I think I'll be able to profile Y/N in my sleep at this point" Lando whined. Oscar's eyes widened. "Sorry" he mumbled. "I'll head back to my room" Oscar walked towards the door dejected. "Also ask her the fuck out mate. It's about time. The worst she could say is no" Lando called out. To Oscar the worst that could happen was, he lost his found family. It was scary and Oscar wasn't sure he could go through with asking her out even though he wanted to.

[andillneverbethesame]

𝒔𝒍𝒖𝒕!

❥ remus lupin x fem!reader

❥ summary; you and remus can't be left alone.

❥ warnings; celebrity!au & soc. media!au

❥ a/n; inspired by taylor swift's "slut!". this is short af and it sucks, i'm sorry. but i wanted to finish it so badly......... hope u enjoy it anyway, ily yallll

the sun shone bright, its rays gently falling on your wet skin as you watched him swimming in your pool.

it was the first time remus came to visit you to los angeles as you've been in london thousand of times and wanted to show him the beauty your state has to offer. he seemed to like it so far, taking some rest from rainy england in sunny california.

the golden liquid you poured into two wine glasses almost matched the color of his hair as he swam from one end of the pool to another — to you. you handed him one of the glasses and he took it from you with a smile on his face. your fingers brushed with his, sending electricity through your entire body.

"to being young," said remus.

you nodded. "to being young."

clink, clink.

all you needed was him.

——————————————————————

later that day, remus took you out for dinner. you believed you've been in every single restaurant in l.a. but your boyfriend proved you wrong.

the moment you walked in, you felt almost everyone's eyes on you. anxiety rushed through your body. almost as if remus could feel it, he gave you a reassuring squeeze and the weight on your shoulders suddenly dropped.

he lead you to an empty table by the window and pulled out your chair. you sent him a smile before sitting down and he took a seat opposite to you.

that was when you made the mistake to look around, locking eyes with numerous people who weren't very excited to see you and remus together.

"ignore them, dove," remus spoke, reading the menu. "they're just jealous of how beautiful you look tonight."

you knew that wasn't the truth but you appreciated him trying enough not to say anything about it anymore. you nodded and picked up the menu and did your best to ignore the glares.

——————————————————————

@celebrityupdates

76,890 likes

@celebrityupdates well, who would've thought! actress y/n y/l/n and "the marauders" bassist remus lupin were spotted together yesterday on a date and then left together hand in hand.

12,656 comments

@user6346873 wasn't she literally dating sirius black like a week ago? bffr girl 💀

-> @siriusblack no, you bffr, she wasn't.

@remuslupinsgf NOO REMUS WHY. she'll cheat on you like she did on everyone else.

               -> @user2578584 name one person she cheated and give me a proof

                   -> @remuslupinsgf whatever. her movies suck anyway

@user742795853 slut.

okay, maybe reading the comments of this post wasn't the best idea, you thought to yourself as if it wasn't completely obvious.

it was the morning after your date with remus and you couldn't understand how these pictures were up already. doesn't the media have better things to do instead of not respecting your privacy and talking about whos hand you're holding?

what also made you angry was that none of the comments seemed to be mentioming the fact that remus recently broke up with someone. you, on the other hand, hadn't been in a relationship for six months.

not that you wanted everyone to attack your boyfriend but you'll be the one to pay the price for the things you two have been doing together. it wasn't fair.

"what got you upset like that?" you jumped at the sound of remus's deep voice from his spot beside you. you glanced at him, your eyes softening at how beautiful he looked lying in your bed with his hair all messy.

"nothing," you mumbled, turned off your phone and placed it at your bedside table. you sighed and got up from the warmth of your covers (and remus's body) before saying, "i'm gonna go grocery shopping. there's absolutely nothing in here. you want something?"

"i'll go with you." 

"i'd rather go alone. i'll be right back." 

and then you left him there, in your bedroom with confusion written all over his pretty features.

——————————————————————

there was no point in keeping your relationship a secret. everyone knew. the picture of your and remus's faces were plastered on the front page of every magazine in north america and united kingdom (remus's friend james said so). still, you tried your best to spend as little time as possible with your boyfriend in public.

unfortunately, as soon as you left the gates of your property to meet remus, you were blinded by the harsh flashes of the cameras. it took your brain a second to register what was going on. remus was waiting there. his two bodyguards were trying to keep the paparazzi away from the two of you.

"y/n!"

"y/n! over here!"

"y/n, what's your message to the haters?"

"y/n, did you hear—"

"i'm sorry," remus spoke loudly so you could hear him well through the voices of the yelling men. "they followed me all the way from hollywood boulevard to here," he reached for your hand and interlinked his fingers with yours. "we couldn't shake them off."

before you could even open your mouth to reply, you were interrupted.

"remus! there's a rumour y/n has been hooking up with sirius black. what do you have to say to that? is it true?"

he completely ignored the question. he knew it wasn't true. you knew he knew.

remus got the door of the car for you and waited for you to get in before shutting it close. when he took a seat next to you and kissed you a "hello" before saying, "you look beautiful tonight", it was easy to forget all about the reality.

——————————————————————

you both were invited to the met gala which took place the very next week. the theme this year was victorian england so you were wearing a pink-white dress with poofy skirt, holding an umbrella of the same colors in your right hand and remus's hand in your left. your eyes were practically glued to him. he looked so handsome in his white shirt, which he had a vest suit over, and dark grey pants. everyone seemed to think so.

while posing for photos on the stairs, remus suddenly turned into you. his face was, out of the blue, too close to yours. you could see it in his eyes, feeling like you could read his mind.

"it's a big mistake," you said, though your smile said otherwise. "it might blow up in your pretty face."

the voice in your head was screaming at him.

do it anyway!

and he's going to.

[cupids-chamber]

LEAVING LIPSTICK MARKS/STAINS ON THEM, that they don't notice until someone points them out..

GENDER NEUTRAL READER A/N: Don't simp at 3-4am darlings, it does things to you.. this is exhibit A.

IMAGINE leaving lipstick stains on RIDDLE'S neck, collarbone, or maybe on his uniform by accident, just imagine his flushed reaction as someone points it out, he didn't expect this to happen. He's probably to flustered, trying to figure out a reasonable excuse, but what was he going to say anyways, 'These lipstick stains are from a mosquito—', Heartslabyul isn't stupid nor naive, I can just imagine the sheer amount of teasing Riddle has to go through after this event.. he'd probably recheck his neck and certain parts of his uniform, before dressing for the day, from now on.. what's worse is that his dorm uniform is white, so it would be more than visible, no matter the shade of lipstick you choose to wear, hell is ace wanted, he'd probably be able to realize the slightly tinted shade of lip gloss, just so he could get back at Riddle a little bit, for all the he was collared previously.

OK, now the same concept but with VIL, he'd probably manage to notice the stains and lipstick marks beforehand, but what if he hadn't, maybe it's early morning.. maybe he's still finishing his routine.. or MAYBE... it's Rook who notices, think about it, what if you had left a mark, PERFECTLY hidden from view or public's gaze, somewhere only Vil would've noticed, like on his upper back, something that can be covered, yet Vil wouldn't notice unless he faced his back on something.. but if anything, ROOK WOULD NOTICE IT, the self proclaimed lover of all things beautiful, Rook with his observant nature and striking extinct would most certainly notice, and point it out to Vil.. and if only you were there to see Vil's perfectly composed face crack into that of embarrassment, as he made a quick, plausible excuse.. after all he wasn't an actor for nothing..

OK OK OK, this scenario with IDIA, oh my god.. think about his reaction, Idia wouldn't notice till someone on call points out a mark on his neck, and of course he uses it as an excuse to further keep his camera on.. only to find out.. it was a lipstick stain, oh his hair would be pink on it's corners as he'd most likely turn into a flustered mess.. I can see it now, Idia coming back on call trying his best to compose himself, a part of him didn't want to remove the mark..

MALLEUS, just.. imagine it, a tall, intimidating, powerful dragon, with a lipstick stain on his neck.. that Lilia would probably never point out, as he finds the ordeal priceless, and Sebek would literally be too stunned to speak.. Imagine the amount of SHEER CONFIDENCE, a typical Diasomnia student would have to gather, to face your beloved.. and point out the VERY OBVIOUS MARK. All I can imagine is Silver pointing it out, once he's awoken from his nap.. I can see Malleus getting flustered over this incident pretty easily, just flushing red and getting embarrassed, at least he's not in front of you like this, right now.. he didn't like the idea of you having the upper hand in teasing him this time around, Lilia will already bring this situation up for years to come.

And finally, SILVER.. He'd probably never notice, just falling asleep going about his day, and much like Malleus's dilemma, Lilia wouldn't point it out for Silver either preferring the teasing rights he'll get out of this afterwards. Silver probably finds out, when Sebek see's the stain and blurts it out with much of a thought, rather loudly mind you, thankfully no one was around.. and the two men just stared at each other awkwardly.. Thank God only Sebek saw him in such a dilemma.. he hopes.

© cupids-chamber, do not repost, plagiarize, translate, or adapt my work without prior permission and or confirmation.

[amazingmsme]

Chin Up, Brother

AN: My first epic fic & I couldn’t be happier! These boys deserve to goof off & have fun, they’re so damn silly at their core. All Polites wants to do is cheer up their captain & he pays the ultimate price. Odysseus is such a teasy bastard, I can’t get over it

Polites can't stand seeing a sour face, especially when concerning his friends. Some days are better than others, with most of the crew in high spirits, but as time drags on, it gets harder and harder to make his friends smile.

Ever since returning from their successful ambush attack, Odysseus hadn't been himself. There was a vacancy behind his eyes; something tense in his stride. Polites couldn't stand seeing him like this.

Of course, he knew that their captain needed time to process... well, everything. But he was practically a walking zombie, going through the motions of life as his mind lingered elsewhere. If he were being honest, Polites missed the old Odysseus: the one who constantly teased and joked with his men, who checked in when he noticed they were upset. But being a captain, there was an invisible line the others didn't dare cross, which meant that his own needs went ignored.

"I don't know Eurylochus, he just seems so sad," he lamented, staring at their friend from afar. He felt a gentle hand rest on his shoulder.

"We all are. He just... has more on his plate than the rest of us," he tried to reason. Polites looked up at him with wide, soft brown eyes.

"Well then, maybe we should help him eat it!" he declared. Eurylochus scoffed and furrowed his brows in confusion, lips tugging upwards into an amused grin.

"Come again?"

Polites rolled his eyes and giggled, shoving his shoulder playfully. "Shut up, you know what I'm trying to say."

Eurylochus threw an arm around his shoulders, guiding him away from their sullen captain. "Just give him some time Polites. He'll be back to himself in no time," he reassured. Polites looked over his shoulder with a frown, dipping out from under his arm and stood blocking his path. Eurylochus looked shocked, but more than that, he looked impressed.

"But we're his friends! We should at least try to cheer him up!" he insisted. Eurylochus heaved a sigh.

"Polites, you need to remember he's our captain first, and our friend second. Let him have his space."

"I think he's had enough space!" he argued, causing his friend to roll his eyes. "You know he'd do the same for us," he said, his tone softer.

"It's his job-"

"Well then, it's our job as his friends to return the favor!" he said, returning to his chipper self. Eurylochus spared a glance at their captain manning the wheel, Polites following his gaze.

Odysseus had been watching them from where he stood, wondering what they were talking about. He tensed when he noticed them looking his way, tightening his grip on the steering wheel. Polites smiled at him and waved. Odysseus didn't wave back.

Eurylochus sighed, knowing he had a point. "What did you have in mind?"

Polites hummed in thought, tapping his chin as he searched his brain for ideas. A bright smile stretched across his face as he turned to face him. "He's ticklish, right?" he asked, mischief beginning to overshadow his innocence.

Eurylochus immediately shook his head, eyes flying wide open. "No!"

Polites smirked and arched a brow. "Um, I'm pretty sure everyone's ticklish somewhere," he said, as if it were obvious. Eurylochus shook his head once more, grabbing him by the shoulder.

"I mean no, he'll kill you for even trying," he tried to warn, but Polites literally laughed him off.

"You know, you really need to learn to relax. Heh, maybe I should tickle you," he teased, reaching out to poke his side. Eurylochus jerked away with a yelp, grabbing onto his wrist after the fact. "Oh? Did I strike a nerve?" he taunted, poking him with his free hand. He choked back a laugh as he caught his other hand, staring him down with a warning look.

"Polites... don't. I'm trying to save you."

He snorted in amusement, dropping his hands to the side. Eurylochus let him go. "Save me from what? Our big, scary captain?" he joked, snickering at the mere thought. Odysseus wouldn't hurt a hair on his head! What was Eurylochus so worried about? He really needed to learn how to relax.

"Fine. It'll be your funeral."

"Oh lighten up Eurylochus!" he said as he headed towards the stairs, pausing to turn and point at him. "Or you'll be next," he winked before breaking off into giggles and rushing up the steps.

He watched him leave, fondly shaking his head. "Yeah, wouldn't count on it," he mumbled to himself, deciding he might as well get a good seat for the show that was surely about to start.

Polites skipped up the last few steps, walking with a bounce in his step that wasn't necessarily out of character, but it did catch Odysseus's attention.

"Hey Captain! How's she handling?" he asked, walking up from behind and clapping a hand on his shoulder. Odysseus studied him from the corner of his eye, growing skeptical.

"Um, fine.”

"Good, good," he nodded, trying to buy himself some time. "Looks like clear skies ahead," he continued with the idle small talk.

Odysseus sighed and turned to look at him, the deep circles under his eyes prominent. "What do you want, Polites?" he asked. He sounded annoyed and tired. Polites frowned. He hesitated before resting a hand on his shoulder, but even the soft touch seemed to startle him. He'd have to tread carefully.

"I want to know how you're holding up," he said earnestly. Odysseus shied away from his gaze, turning back to the open ocean that lay ahead.

"I'm fine," he said, his clenched jaw making his words sound harsh. His tone made Polites flinch back, holding his hands up in a placating motion. Odysseus regretted it almost instantly.

"Is that all you know how to say? Fine?" he asked, a playful, sheepish grin toying at the corner of his mouth. Odysseus felt himself fighting off a smile of his own at his friend's antics.

"Oh I could say a lot more. I'm just sparing you," he snarked.

"You don't have to. I'm always here if you need to talk," he insisted.

"Okay Polites," he huffed, bending his knees slightly and leaning back on the first word to emphasize his point, and yeah, Polites didn't appreciate the level of sass. Any hesitation he had about what he was about to do, Odysseus squashed it with that remark.

Eurylochus had made his way to the upper deck and sat down, untangling a mass of rope and knots to appear at least somewhat busy. His eyes were glued to the pair, wondering just how this would play out.

"Sounds like someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed," he teased, crossing his arms. He noticed the way Odysseus bit back a smile.

"Careful. Did you forget who you're talking to?" he asked pointedly, arching a brow. Polites was practically beaming.

"Not at all, Captain," he spoke in his usual friendly manner, but with an uncharacteristic amount of sarcasm towards the end. Odysseus scoffed, mouth hanging open at the sheer audacity.

Polites glanced at Eurylochus and shot him a wink before gasping loudly, pointing in front of Odysseus and off to the side. "Wow, a pod of whales!"

Some men on the lower deck must've heard him, because a few rushed over to the rail to catch a glimpse. And just as he predicted, Odysseus turned to look. Now or never.

"Ticka ticka ticka ticka ticka!" he cried, scribbling his fingers over his sides and tweaking his ribs.  Odysseus honest to the Gods shrieked before a few deep belly laughs escaped. He tucked his arms close and doubled over, jerking the wheel to a hard right before letting go, and causing everyone to stumble and slide across the deck.

"Polites!" he scolded as said man was lost to a fit of bright, bubbly laughter. Odysseus scrambled to grab the wheel and right the ship, blushing profusely while simultaneously glaring daggers at his supposed "friend." Meanwhile the men below were yelling their own complaints, talking over each other and grumbling.

Polites wiped away a tear of mirth, patting him on the back before pulling him into a one armed hug. And okay, he couldn't help but shove his hand under his arm and poke his belly with the other. Odysseus snorted and tensed up, deep, rumbly giggles slipping past his clenched teeth before Polites finally relented.

"Ah, it's good to hear you laugh again Captain. No hard feelings," he said, going as far as to ruffle his hair before turning to leave.

"And just where do you think you're going?" The dark, even tone made Polites stop dead in his tracks.

A cold chill ran down his spine and he turned to face him. He caught sight of a smug, not very sympathetic Eurylochus. To make matters worse, he returned his wink from earlier.

"U-um, back to work?" he said weakly. Odysseus shook his head and let out a downright sinister chuckle. Before this moment, he didn't even know a laugh could be scary.

"After that? I don't think so." He took a step forward, and Polites took three steps back.

"I-I was just trying to cheer you up!" he pleaded, eyes wide.

"Really? Wow, I never would've guessed that," he mocked, letting his voice start to take on a teasing edge. "But how about I repay the favor?" he asked, voice dropping lower as he let the smirk he'd been holding back overtake his features.

"No thanks!" he was quick to say, foot already on the first step down.

"No, really. I insist."

Polites opened his mouth, but he was at a loss for words.

"Eurylochus?"

Said man perked up at the sound of his name, and he suddenly felt nervous hearing it thrown out amidst the altercation. "Yes sir?"

"Take the wheel."

He smirked to himself and nodded dutifully as he stood.

"Yes sir."

Polites wasted no time, rushing down the stairs as fast as he could. Unfortunately, mistakes were made and he ended up in a crumbled heap at the bottom. Odysseus peered down from the railing that overlooked the deck. "You okay down there?"

Polites gave a weak thumbs up.

The sound of fast, heavy footsteps above him kicked him into high gear and he scrambled to his feet. Odysseus took the stairs two at a time, vaulting over the rail and jumping on the deck once he was close enough. Polites was weaving through the thin crowd, desperately trying to make it to the crows nest. Maybe if he climbed up there, he could just stay there until Odysseus forgot all about it.

And then his face hit the deck for a second time.

He immediately began pleading his case as Odysseus rolled him onto his back. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry, it'll never happen again!" He thrashed and squirmed trying to escape, but Odysseus had him thoroughly trapped. "Please, I'm sorry! Don't kill me!"

Odysseus threw his head back with a hearty laugh. "Oh Polites, you're so funny. A little tickling never killed anyone," he taunted, leaning in with a feral grin. Polites squeezed his eyes shut, biting his lip to dam the giggles that were already making an appearance.

"N-not yet!" he whined, drawing another low chuckle from the captain.

"Oh, you plan on being the first?" he taunted, tongue peaking out between his teeth as he grinned down at him. Then, as if to rub it in further, he laughed at his own joke and began cracking his knuckles. Polites giggled nervously, legs scrambling for purchase on the deck as he tried to get away.

"Nohoho! Let me gohoho! I'm sohohorry!"

"Laughing already? Maybe you should've thought this through," he said, mock sympathy dripping from his voice.

"Odysseus, plehehease! Dohon't!" Polites tried to plead his case one last time. The captain smirked, cocking his head at his friend.

"Don't what, Polites?" he asked, feigning cluelessness. Or was he going for innocence? It was kind of hard to tell.

Now, Odysseus was known for being sly and tricky. From his place at the wheel, Eurylochus saw the trap for what it was. Polites on the other hand, wasn't in a place to scrutinize his friend's intent. He answered almost immediately, "Tickle me!"

In all honesty, Odysseus wasn't sure he'd fall for it or not. He couldn't be happier.

Polites yelped and flinched when Odysseus fell forward in a fit of laughter, resting his forehead on Polites's chest. His shoulders shook with the force of his laughter before he sat up straight. Polites opened his mouth to speak, but froze when he saw the downright predatory look Odysseus was giving him.

"Polites, Polites, Polites..." he shook his head and patted his cheek each time he addressed him. Said man whined, twisting his head away from the patronizing hand.

"W-why're you saying it like that?" he asked nervously. Odysseus stared at him in awe.

"You don't even realize what you just said, do you?" Realization washed over Polites, his eyes going wide. Odysseus's smirk only grew as he watched it dawn on his friend.

"No wait, that's not what I meant! I was answering your question!"

"You really ought to use your words more carefully," he warned before digging in. He latched onto his hips, drilling circles with his thumbs. Polites immediately burst into loud, bubbly laughter as he slapped at his hands.

"Y-you trihihicked mehehe!" he cried, as if that fact would make him stop.

"Yeah, and it was easy. Seriously, you walked right into that one buddy," he taunted, slipping his hands under his shirt to scribble over his bare stomach. Polites snorted, trying to roll on his side. His laughter grew deeper and more full as one of his worst spots was targeted.

"NOHOHO! Cahahaptain, not there! Not thehehehere! Plehease!" he begged, thrashing as much as he could, though mostly he was fighting to curl into the tightest ball possible to protect his sensitive tummy. Odysseus slowed his movements, drumming his fingers impatiently to keep him giggling, broken up by the occasional hiccup.

"Alright tough guy, then where?"

Polites managed to grab his hands by interlocking their fingers and shoved them back as he caught his breath. "W-whahat?"

"You said not there... so, where should I tickle instead?" he asked, the happiest, smuggest grin gracing his lips. Oh Polites hated him right now.

"Nowhere!"

"Sorry, I'm afraid I can't accept that answer."

"Why ahare you being soho mean?" he whined, trying to work his way free. Odysseus decided to let him think he had a chance.

"You made me almost capsize the ship!" Okay, maybe that was an over exaggeration, but he could have made them capsize. And that would've been a tough one to explain to the rest of the fleet.

Polites rolled his eyes, mumbling under his breath, "You're the one who jerked the wheel..." Apparently he didn't mutter quiet enough.

Odysseus scoffed, mouth hanging open. "Excuse me?" Polites froze, mouth snapping shut. "Care to repeat that?" He shook his head frantically. "No, say it again. I don't think I heard you correctly," he said, slipping out of his grip with ease and poking all over his stomach.

"Plehehease! This ihisn't fahair!" he giggled, propping himself up weakly on his elbows, trying to crawl out from where he was pinned.

"No, what's not fair is tickling me in front of everyone, while I'm busy doing a very important task, no less" he insisted, trying to come off as stern, but he was smiling far too wide.

"It wahas just five seconds, Captain," Polites chuckled, arching a brow playfully. He just didn't know when to quit, did he?

"Oh yeah? Then I guess you deserve five minutes."

"WHAT?"

"Yeah, you can handle it. Five minutes is nothing," Odysseus shrugged casually, but the look in his eyes was that of a pure feral mischief.

Polites looked at him in utter shock. "No, five minutes is five minutes!"

"Always so eloquent," he taunted, wiggling a finger between his ribs. Polites barked out a laugh, twisting away. Of course, he only jerked into the other hand, delivering a nibbling pinch to his lower ribs. "Now shut up and laugh."

"That's contradictoRYYYYY!" Polites broke off into a shriek that melted into shrill giggles.

"You never answered my question by the way," he teased, playing his ribs like a piano. Polites snorted, both hands flying up to cover his face, but the red hue tinging his cheeks was visible in between his fingers.

"Ohoho bite mehehe!" he snarked, throwing his head back in wild laughter. The sound was full and bright, drawing out a good handful of soldiers to enjoy the rare bout of mischief on display.

"Well if you insist..." he smirked down at him as he began slowly rolling up his shirt. Polites shook his head, hands fighting to tug his shirt back down.

"NO! O-Odysseus, don't you dare!" he threatened weakly before he was shoved back down to the deck.

"Why? What're you gonna do about it?" he asked, tilting his head to the side like a curious puppy, or perhaps, more like a hungry wolf.

"I'll... Never talk to you again!" Even Polites knew that was a lie, and Odysseus didn't mind calling him out on it.

"Ha! You couldn't even last a day," he proclaimed, making Polites huff with a pout. "Oh don't give me that look, you know it's true," Odysseus rolled his eyes, reaching down to claw his stomach.

Polites gave up on holding his shirt down in favor of fending off the attacking hands. Odysseus took his chance and tugged the shirt up, pausing as an idea came to him, and he pulled the shirt over his friend's head with an evil little snicker.

"HEHEY!" he yelled as his vision was replaced with white fabric. Odysseus shrugged, despite knowing he couldn't really see him.

"What? It was getting in the way," he said as he lowered his head towards his bare stomach.

"It was NOHOHOT! BY THEHE GOHOHODS, STOHOHOP!" Polites shrieked through hysterics, completely taken off guard now that he couldn't see what Odysseus was doing.

He paused, sitting up to push his hair away from his face. "What? You said to bite you," he reminded cheekily.

"You're thehe worst!" Polites whined, reaching up to yank the shirt off of his head, only for Odysseus to playfully smack him away.

"Well that's not very nice! I never would've thought you of all people would forget your manners," he teased before diving back in to nibble his sides, sending him into another bout of hysterics. Odysseus shook his head and growled into the skin, making loud fake chewing sounds. Polites was almost grateful for his shirt hiding his face; at least then no one could see how much he was blushing.

In fact, he couldn't remember a time he felt more embarrassed. Maybe if he thought hard about it he could, but there was no chance of that happening any time soon. Odysseus had a perfect knack for doing or saying the most flustering thing at any given moment, and it seemed like he was intent on putting him through the wringer.

Polites was pulled from his thoughts when a shriek ripped itself from his throat as a raspberry was blown in the middle of his belly.

"Nonono Cahahaptahain DOHOHON'T!" he squealed before breaking off in shrill laughter, peppered with snorts. His legs scrambled and kicked the deck from where he was pinned, hands flying about uselessly. Odysseus popped back up to let him catch his breath.

"You're way more ticklish than me! I can't believe you honestly thought you could get away with that," he taunted, letting his fingers crawl up his sides towards his ribs. He leaned in to growl in his ear, "Just how did that work out for you?" He reached up to tug his shirt back down. What good was tickling him if he couldn't see the smile plastered on his adorable face?

"Hohohorrible! Ca-Cahahaptain plehehease! Let me gohoho I'm sohohohorryyyy!" Polites begged through helpless giggles that Odysseus chuckled along with.

"See, you say that, but you don't sound all that sorry," he teased, barely biting back his smirk.

"Ihihi aham!" he insisted. Odysseus studied him with a sly grin.

"Alright then... prove it," he ordered. Polites furrowed his brows as he sucked in air between bouts of giggles. He stared up at the captain skeptically.

"... How?" he questioned, arching a brow. His glasses were askew in the opposite direction, making for a rather funny expression. Odysseus snorted, reaching out to fix his glasses for him. "Oh, thank you," he muttered, adjusting them slightly, sitting them in a more comfortable position than Odysseus had.

"It's easy, really, all you gotta do is keepyourarmsup," he finished his sentence in a jumbled rush, masking it with a fake cough. But Polites heard him loud and clear, clutching his arms to his chest.

"Nohoho wahay, are you crahazy?" he asked incredulously.

"No, I'm the captain," he answered smugly. Polites stared at him, rather unamused by the joke it would seem. Odysseus couldn't have that, so he latched onto his knees.

"SHIT SHIT SHIHIHIT! Nohohot thehehere!" Polites fell back on the deck, overwhelmed by another fit of laughter. Odysseus relentlessly squeezed his kneecaps, no matter where they tried to kick to escape his grasp. Polites snorted, hiding his face behind his hands. He had no choice but to comply. "Ohohokahay I'll dohoho ihit!"

Odysseus pulled his hands away with a smirk. "There, that wasn't so hard, was it?" he asked innocently. Polites threw his head back with a giggly whine. He flinched with a sharp yelp when Odysseus tapped his elbows.

"C'mon, put 'em up," he prompted, making the task practically impossible by wiggling his fingers threateningly.

A small group of spectators stood off to the side, seemingly enjoying the show. Elpenor couldn’t help but throw in his two cents, cupping his hands around his mouth, "Remember, we need him alive, Sir!"

Odysseus let out a hearty laugh, patting his victim on the chest. "He's still breathing!"

"Barely!" Polites squeaked out, drawing out more laughter from their audience. His pink cheeks turned a shade darker.

"Pft, and you say I'm dramatic. This'll be the last thing, I swear," Odysseus said, hiding crossed fingers behind his back. Polites looked at him skeptically before sighing in defeat.

"Promise?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Promise?" he repeated himself, trying to sound more stern. Odysseus rolled his eyes.

"Yes, fine, I promise," he lied.

Polites took a deep breath and squeezed his eyes shut. He raised his arms up about halfway before he froze, shaking his head as nervous giggles spilled out. Odysseus shrugged.

"Eh, good enough for me," he declared before digging his hands in the free space under his arms. Polites squealed and his arms came crashing down immediately. Odysseus couldn't help but laugh along as Polites snorted through his laughter. His mouth hung open in a wide smile, dimples shining on his rosy cheeks.

After a few seconds he let up on his friend, but he didn't yet release him. Polites looked up at him, squirming more the longer he remained trapped.

"H-hey, aren't you gonna let me up?"

Odysseus offered a not so sympathetic look. "About that... I was crossing my fingers." Polites gasped at the betrayal.

"But you promised!"

"And this'll be the last last thing. Promise for real this time," Odysseus said, holding his hand out to shake. Polites looked at his hand, then up to meet his gaze as he scoffed.

"I dohon't trust you!"

"You trust me with your life," Odysseus taunted in a matter of fact tone, sly smirk playing at his lips. Polites bit the inside of his cheek to try and hide his amusement.

"That's different," Polites reasoned.

"Mmm, is it though?" he asked, cocking his head. Polites glared up at him, but the blush and smile combo he sported lessened the blow. Odysseus took the chance to scoop up one of his hands, giving it a firm shake to seal the deal before Polites wretched free from his grasp with a half amused huff.

"There, now you have my word."

"A lotta good that's worth," Polites sassed, crossing his arms. Odysseus stared at him in shock.

"Oh I'm sorry, do you want me to keep going?" he growled in a low, threatening tone, reaching down to squeeze his hips unexpectedly. Polites screeched and arched his back, hands flying down to protect himself.

"NOHOHO I'M SOHOHORRY PLEHEHEASE!"

Odysseus pulled back with a proud grin, "Yeah, that's what I thought. And just for that..." he trailed off, adjusting their position slightly to make sure Polites was securely pinned.

He giggled nervously, body already tensing up. "Ohohodysseus, plehease! Just let me gohoho!" he whined.

"After that remark? I don't think so."

Odysseus grabbed his head, gently holding it to the side, and Polites knew what was coming.

"Nohoho, please not thahahat! Cahahaptain, please, I'm sorrYYYYY!" his begging fell on deaf ears, morphing into a squeal as Odysseus bent down to blow a raspberry on the sweet spot just below his ear. Bubbly giggles filled the salty sea air as Polites fought for his life, flopping around on the deck in desperate search for any leverage he could use for escape. Odysseus took a deep breath, gently turning his head so he could get the other side.

Another giggly scream burst free from his lungs, hands shoving weakly at his shoulders. Polites wasn't sure how he could have so much air in his lungs, the gods had to be playing some cruel joke on him. And then, just like that it was over. Odysseus rolled off of him, leaving him to cope with a residual laughing fit, furiously rubbing away the lingering feelings on his neck.

Odysseus drummed a quick beat on Polites's chest, chuckling when he was playfully smacked away.

"You're an asshole," Polites said, not even bothering to try and hide the wide grin overtaking his features. “And you need to shave.” Odysseus chuckled, scratching his stubble nonchalantly.

"Sorry bud, I had to make an example outta you," he shrugged with a cheeky click of his tongue. He stood up and brushed himself off, offering a hand to Polites. He hesitantly accepted it, allowing himself to be pulled to his feet. His legs felt just a tad shaky, but he quickly steadied himself. The embarrassment, however, was much harder to hide.

Odysseus tried to reach up to ruffle his hair, but Polites quickly danced out of reach with a giggle. "Stahay away from me!" he yelled, pointing an accusing finger at him.

Odysseus just stood there, a smug, shit eating grin on his face as he watch Polites go running back to Eurylochus.

A soft hoot to his left startled him, and he turned to see an owl perched nearby, watching him with its head tilted at a perfect 90° angle.

Now it was his turn to blush it seemed, as the owl hooted again, twisting its head all the way around. It stared up at him with large, curious eyes.

"Oh shut up, I was teaching him a lesson."

But Athena knew better.

[dollarstoreartsupplies]

day 2: party - @lautski-week

get it.,, like a..,,.,,, dnd party.,.,.,..,,

i straight up gasped when i realized i could use this as an excuse to talk about my lautski dnd au, so, if ur interested im gonna go feral about it below the cut:

steph: half-elven fighter

solomon lauter is a deeply corrupt, incredibly magical high elven king whose maintained his rule through intense dealings with the pantheon of the lords in black

he married a human woman at some point in his rule and he does love her, at first, just not as much as his power

so when the lords in black make him promise to sacrifice her in the name of some deal, he's sort of upset but... obviously he's gonna do it, she was gonna die before him anyway, it's not like it's a huge deal to let her die a little early, his subjects will think it was a squishy human life span thing, bada bing bada boom, hands clean of the whole affair

BUT.... then his wife gets pregnant and has a Stephanie... which kinda fucks shit up because said Stephanie is still fucking there after his wife has been sacrificed

he hates her, partially because she's a half-elf and partially because of what she represents, and she hates him, which results in her having very few boundaries because he doesn't want to deal with her

she's still a princess, and she's surrounded by high elves who think she's stupid and inferior because she's only a half elf and she has very little magical prowess, so it's not exactly ideal circumstances even with her extra freedoms

so she learns to punch things

because if people are dicks she can't outwit them but she can deck them

eventually the lords in black offer another trade with her dad where he can trade her for extra magic, but mostly it's just a test to prove his loyalty and he is honestly more than happy to get rid of her

except steph gets wind of it (because she's generally close with the kind of people who fucking hate the king/don't get treated with enough respect for people to not gossip around them) and she runs the fuck away

so now she's being chased down by her father who is facing pressure from the libs for not making the sacrifice, all the while experiencing actual respect and freedom for the first time from her party members

pete: teifling warlock-wizard multiclass

so you know that post thats like it's ethically ambiguous but you can hand off any cursed object to a baby? that's pete's whole thing in this kind of

ted, his full human older brother, was a intentional patron of tinky, who hadn't really thought it through and tried to get out of it by making a stupid promise and really just ended up dooming himself and his unborn brother (he felt really bad about it before he disappeared under mysterious circumstances, tho)

pete was born with a warlock pact to tinky (which was pretty obvious when his full human parents created a bright yellow teifling baby)

he hates tinky and is very uncomfortable and upset by the whole thing, so he multi classed into wizard shit when he was, like, eleven

tinky actively attempts to prevent him from gaining levels in wizard

he lies about being only a wizard and has spent years coming up for excuses about why a lot of his 'wizard spells' are very specifically warlock ones if someone asks (literally no one has ever noticed or questioned it)

because he was born with the pact bond tinky's hold over him is way stronger, and if he really submits (when shit gets super bad) tinky can take over his body and puppet him into doing some fucked up violent shit

he is truly treated like SHIT for being a teifling in his home town and it really minimizes a lot of his academic prospects, even though he's so smart, so part of the reason why he's traveling with his party is to try and find a real wizarding academy that will take him

(and one that can maybe help break his pact with tinky)

Bonus:

Ruth: human rouge who desperately wants to be a bard, but she's too nervous to perform and ironically, tragically hiding the fuck out in the shadows comes a lot easier

Richie: firbolg artificer -- he's pretty bad with the magical aspects of anything, but he builds a lot of cool ass machinery to make up for it (even if, god, hes SO upset by how bad he is at magic)

Grace: High Elven Cleric who WILL become a fucked up little warlock to the lords in black eventually (she is from steph's kingdom and followed her when she ran away to 'protect her'. Steph has been trying to shake her this whole time)

[midniiights-garden]

Your Eyes... They're like Diamonds. Mizu x Fem!Reader [2]

Summary: The second part of your encounter with Mizu. Things will get heated, but by how much is the question.

Possible TWs!!: Suggestive themes, nudity, cursing

IF YOU ARE NOT 18+ PLEASE DO NOT CONTINUE READING!!

"What?"

Mizu stared at you, completely and utterly confused. Did... Did you just ask her to stab you? Most people would be terrified to have her blade at their throat yet you seemed a little bit too eager. A bit too happy. She lowers her katana, now attempting to recover herself. She was still buck ass naked after all.

"I'm sorry... What did you just ask me?" Mizu asks again, brows drawn as she continues to try to comprehend what you just said.

"I-I, uh-!" I stutter, now realising how awkward this was. The words hadn't meant to slip out of my mouth yet it happened. However, I was terribly underequipped socially to respond. I could only stare (at her face... not anything else...) as I feel my face heat up, not able to do anything much.

"Did... why?" Mizu continues.

"I... you're just... you know... really pretty...?" I squeak, feeling my face get redder and redder with each word. Despite being in a snowy landscape I defintely did not feel it. My entire body was hot with both shame and embarassment, my eyes refusing to meet Mizu's.

On the other hand Mizu is absolutely reeling. Were you joking? You didn't seem like it. No, you were far too embarassed by your words to have been joking. But... did that mean you were attracted to women? And if you were... why did she actually feel happy about it?

Mizu did not have a great many examples of romantic nor sexual relationships. Her mother raised her alone (for obvious reasons), Master Eiji's wife was dead and then there was whatever the hell Akemi and Taigen had. So, not many good examples. And her own past marriage was... not great either. To put it lightly. Mizu had always just assumed she was solely attracted to men and yet here she was, absolutely confused as to why she felt so elated that there was a possibility you were attracted to her. Scratch that: that you were definitely attracted to her.

I had been standing there for a while now as Mizu lost herself in her thoughts, my face somehow continuing to go red. Why? Why did she have to be built so beautifully? From her lithe form to the curve of her hips and breasts it was so incredibly hard to keep your thoughts PG13.

"Uh... M-Mizu?" I manage to croak. "Do you... maybe... want to put some clothes on...?" With that Mizu's trance is broken, her eyes snapping upwards to meet mine (much to my dismay). She marches forward, pinning me against a nearby tree. Her hands are on either side of my face, her eyes glaring daggers into mine.

"Do you think this is funny?" She hisses, still not wanting to believe the things I had said.

I shake my head. "N-No! Not at all! Mizu, I'm being serious-"

She doesn't allow me to finish, her lips enclosing over mine before I could even get a word in. My breath hitches in my throat, breathing completely stopped as she kisses me. Her lips were so... so soft. Holy shit. I was in absolute heaven. Once she pulled away I swore I was going to pass out, her brilliant blue eyes staring into mine.

She huffs, her heart hammering in her chest. Mizu didn't understand why she felt like this. She didn't understand why she was so... turned on? Was she turned on? She defintely felt like she was turned on. Watching the way your face moved, the widening of your eyes, the twitch of your lips and the furrow of your brows. When had you gotten so pretty? Without thinking Mizu trails her hand towards your hip, rubbing circles over your clothed skin.

"What the fuck is this..." Mizu grumbles, moving her lips towards your neck.

"M-Mizu?" I squeak, eyes widening even further. I felt hot. So hot. Even more hot than before. If my earlier heat was caused by embarassment this bout of heat was caused by the fact that she was quite literally feeling me up now.

"Do you want this?" Mizu finally whispers.

(A/N: HAHAHAHAHA YOU THOUGHT FUCKERS. Jk im gonna continue this, i just felt like it needed some prerequisite explanation and build up as i wanted to really emphasisize the point that Mizu was confused. Plus, in my personal headcanons (and somewhat canon) she is rather hesitant to initiate or engage in physical intimacy. So, ig my own fanfic is breaking my own characterization a lil 😭😭😭)

[byfulcrums]

I wanted to talk about this because it's been on my mind since I finished season 4

The way peaches represent Sun Wukong and Macaque's relationship. When they're happy in Flower Fruit Mountain, just the two of them — no brotherhood, no Jade Emperor (along with the entirety of Heaven), no journey to the West —, Sun Wukong gives Macaque a peach.

It doesn't look like much. SWK eats peaches all the time and his mountain is filled with them (seriously, is that all he eats? He really, really really loves peaches, man. How does he not get tired of them? I'd get grossed out after the first few months), of course he'd give one to his best friend! His most loyal subject!

In this scene, they're comfortable with each other. SWK talks about how what he wants is to live a lazy life with him and his monkeys, just chilling and eating peaches and basking in the sun? I can't remember exactly what he said but the point is, that he wants things to stay like that forever. Just the two of them (along with a thousand monkeys), living happily in a mountain with SWK being strong enough to protect all of them

SWK gives Macaque a peach. Macaque accepts it; the peach is fine. They're good.

The next time we see one of them give the other a peach is during another flashback, the one where SWK and Macaque are talking while Sun Wukong is sealed under the mountain (the position he was in looked so uncomfortable? He wasn't laying on his belly with the mountain on his back, he looked like he was trying to run away before he got caught with the mountain on his back), and they are definitely not good then

Macaque offers Sun Wukong a peach (read; Macaque offers Sun Wukong a peach, when Wukong was the one to offer one to Macaque before. The sun gives the moon its light, but the moon can't offer anything to it in return) and Sun Wukong acts passive aggressive with him, leaving it clear that no, Mac, he doesn't want that fucking peach (well, maybe he does, but we'll get to that later)

They're both in the right here, but they're also both in the wrong. Macaque is right for being angry at Sun Wukong. If he hadn't followed Azure's plan (he [Azure] was so fucking grooming that monkey, what the fuck. Not sexual btw), the brotherhood would've been fine, and Sun Wukong wouldn't be trapped under the mountain. However, Sun Wukong is also allowed to be angry at Macaque; from his POV, Macaque ran away from the fight when he realized they were losing. Macaque pretty much abandoned him first. I'd be angry too, honestly

Macaque is wrong for telling Sun Wukong that he's the one that got himself in that mess when really, that was partly Azure's fault. Weren't it for him Sun Wukong apparently wouldn't have cared about Heaven, since unlike what happens in JTTW (haven't read it yet, pls tell me if I'm wrong!), all he wanted was to live a comfortable life and train his troops (Azure was the one who saw him first; he found this... child? And thought that yeah, he can use this. He put him in a pedestal and showered him in compliments he didn't deserve nor want. He manipulated him to get what he wanted; not a king, but a weapon)

Sun Wukong is in the wrong for treating Macaque like shit here too, since he literally warned him and again, he wasn't at fault. Neither of them were!

Back to the point — in this scene, when Sun Wukong rejects the peach, Macaque crushes it with his hand. Later, after Macaque leaves, Sun Wukong expresses how he actually really wanted that peach. Or, in other words, Macaque tries to offer Sun Wukong his support, his friendship, and when Sun Wukong rejects it, he gives up and destroys any way of getting back together; later, it is revealed that Sun Wukong didn't genuinely want to be left alone, and that he did still wish to be friends, in a way

This, we can say is the point where their relationship was broken. The peach is left on the floor, abandoned, and Sun Wukong with it. As far as we know, Macaque didn't come back after, and even if he did it's pretty obvious that wouldn't have gone very well

(Also, just to add, and you can skip this part if you want! When Macaque is looking at the memory, he looks kinda confused? Like he doesn't remember it happening that way. Maybe that's one of the LBD messed with when she brought him back, if she even was touching them. I'm not sure if that's canon, I forgot. Please tell me if you know?)

The next and last time one of them offers the other a peach it's, again, Sun Wukong to Macaque (it's almost like that's the way it's meant to be. Huh. Sun and moon indeed haha!)

They're in a beach again! Yay! Sun Wukong's (and possibly Macaque's later, if he gets a proper redemption arc) friends and family (MK and the gang, and also the DBK fam) are there too. Sun Wukong is watching them in the sun (lol) when Macaque goes and joins him. He doesn't even go there to annoy him and as far as we know he didn't even get an invite, so he really just went to the event to chill with SWK. During this whole scene, we can see that Macaque isn't interested in starting a fight (fucking finally, man), even if Sun Wukong does act kinda aggressive at first. Which, y'know. Fair

They're in a beach again. Presumably not the same one, but still a beach. They're back to the beginning, but not really, because they're both different people. They've changed, and their relationship(s) with them

This time, it's not an actual peach being offered. It's a peach popsicle. I don't know how to spell that. Sun Wukong offers it to Macaque, and Macaque looks surprised but eventually accepts it. He appears to be happy with this

This I believe represents how they're both willing to begin a new relationship (platonic, romantic or something else, see it as you want). A new relationship; a changed one

Sun Wukong doesn't give Macaque an actual peach, he gives him a peach popsicle. He's offering his friendship, an offering Macaque accepts, but it's not the same it was before, and it never will be. They know they'll never be the way they were in the past, and they accept it. Sun Wukong offers Macaque his friendship, telling him that it won't be the same, but that if they want to heal then they've got to accept that — and Macaque takes it. It's not the same, there are mistakes that can never be fixed and actions that can't be undone, but they're willing to start anew

It'll be different, but it could be even better if they try (if they fucking COMMUNICATE for once)

And the popsicle will eventually melt. They'll eventually fight again; they'll fall apart, and maybe get so angry at each other they'll refuse to talk to each other for a while (y'know how stubborn they can be), but (usually depending on where you live) popsicles can be surprisingly cheap!

If the popsicle melts, if they struggle, they'll just buy another one, they'll just keep trying

Now all we need is a scene where Sun Wukong (or Macaque, to show them as equals if not in power then in... y'know, their relationship? I'm not sure what the word would be) gives Macaque an actual peach to show how they're them again. Not the same, never the same, but still them

[darkpoisonouslove]

HotD S02E07

Honestly, I do not have much to say about this episode (I think... it's still possible for my thoughts to spiral out of control as I start writing them out). There was barely any Greens content, which made me a little bored, I have to say. The thing is that they are kind of dragging their feet here. I get the feeling they're trying to get as many seasons as possible out of a single book but, like, maybe you could have explored the events of season 1 in two seasons then? We literally sprinted through more than 20 years in one season and now things are moving quite slowly. Anyway, more details under the cut:

Does Addam realize he could have just taken Seasmoke and fucked off to do whatever he wants? What was Rhaenyra going to do? Fight him and risk her life or at least losing Syrax to someone that isn't even her enemy in the war? Sure, he doesn't know Valyrian but Seasmoke didn't really seam to give much of a shit about that anyway. What I'm saying is basically that Rhaenyra is so lucky that Addam's ambitions of earning recognition only go so far because Seasmoke definitely would have fought Syrax tooth and nail to protect Addam if he had decided not to bend the knee.

Meanwhile Corlys during this whole episode:

His interaction with Addam was so awkward! Well, gee, thanks, dad, for the praise! Are we going to see him actually do anything as Hand?

Jasper trying to talk Larys into breaking the news of Rhaenyra's new dragon rider to Aemond was so funny. You can clearly hear him thinking "Well, he already hates Larys. Why should I draw his ire? Honestly, Larys should just take one for the team and tell him the news, which will 100% set him off!" Larys refusing to be the scapegoat by going "Tis' but a fable." The Larys content is popping off these last few episodes! I have to say that it's funny how ineffective Aemond has made his own Council by being so harsh and completely unwilling to listen to any of them. If he hadn't made it so clear he doesn't give a shit about their opinions and would trample them down for daring to say anything, they might have warned him earlier and they could have prevented Rhaenyra from getting more dragons. Not like she didn't have to outsource bastards from King's Landing. Had Aemond known about any of this, he could have intervened in some way but he brought this on himself.

I see we're not going to address the Rhaenyra and Mysaria kiss from last episode.

Oscar Tully, the man that you are! I don't really have much to say about the whole Harrenhal segment besides how fun it was watching this young boy completely destroy Daemon in front of everyone. He even forced him into a situation where Daemon has to do what Oscar wanted of him and after this obvious demonstration that Daemon will turn on his allies with the wind, he's pretty much further cemented the impression he made on the Riverlands lords that they should never consider him their leader. I like how they made it understandable why Oscar is so set on keeping old oaths since that's the way the Riverlands function. The choice to only make Daemon "succeed" through factors that he has entirely no control of is priceless, it has to be said. At this point they can just write "loser" on his forehead.

That red cloak for Rhaenyra's maid is such a baffling design choice. She's supposed to be incognito but she stands out like a sore thumb. Besides, only someone rich can afford to have clothes dyed in such a rich red color. It instantly makes it obvious she is working for someone of noble birth and makes her so very easy to keep track of even in a crowd. Why have they done this?

Someone pointed out that putting up fliers when the general population is illiterate is a really funny way to advertise and I have to agree.

Respectfully, I do not give a shit about Hugh and his dead child. Maybe I would have if they had actually shown the death and didn't make him act like that's in the past already. Also, maybe once let a woman want something? I mean, they just lost their daughter. Let his wife want to have the power and means to prevent that from happening to other people and to any future children they might have ffs. This show only pretends to be feminist but will not let women want anything for 3 seconds.

I wrote a whole essay on Larys and Aegon and I've decided to make it the focus of its own post that you can find here.

Rhaena's scene is a perfect demonstration of what I mean when I say that they're dragging their feet. They just hinted that there will be exciting developments in the next episode and didn't do anything to actually move that plot line along. They could have easily cut that scene and put a condensed version of it in the next episode right before Rhaena actually gets to claim Sheepstealer.

The focus for this episode is obviously Rhaenyra's plan with the Dragonseeds and that has had some very interesting developments.

First of all, love how they show us that Rhaenyra is exactly her father's daughter. She hasn't thought this through anymore than Viserys did. He wanted her to be his heir but still married and raped Alicent because he just wanted to have sex and then proceeded to ignore his children from her and the problem that having legitimate sons is creating for the entire realm. Rhaenyra just wanted to have sex with Harwin and had three illegitimate sons and now to win the war for her own inheritance she has to take away the only symbol of legitimacy that Jace has. By very clearly showing that just random bastards that know nothing of the tradition surrounding dragons and can't even speak the language of the dragons can just as successfully ride them, she totally destroys the idea that Jace is somehow more than any Targaryen bastard that you can find at Fleabottom. Great job, Rhaenyra!

To be fair, all her options are equally bad but she's the one that did this. If she hadn't had illegitimate children, she literally wouldn't have been facing this problem. She just thought that her being princess and heir to the throne will give her a pass for anything but she has set Jace up for another war now. When she dies and he ascends the throne, there will be people who will think him not worthy of it because he's not any different from all the other bastards that were raised as the lowest links of society. There will also be the other bastards with dragons that can try to steal his throne. People were saying that Alicent is at fault for everything bad that happens to her children because she put Aegon on the throne but Rhaenyra is doing the exact same thing to Jace now and it is for a crown. She knew from the start her claim was shaky and that Jace's claim as her heir is even more shaky. She still proceeded because she wanted that crown.

The dragon tamers revolting against Rhaenyra's actions was such a great representation of how interlaced the dragons are with the classism and the "divine right to rule" of the Targaryens. To win this war Rhaenyra literally has to tear down the very pillars on which the supremacy of her house is built. She's self-destructing in slow motion because yes, she might win and get to sit the throne but the people will get disillusioned about the dragons being gods and about the Targaryens having the sole claim to the throne if any bastard can walk in directly from the street and claim a dragon. That voiceover in the beginning of season 1 saying the only thing that can destroy the House of the Dragon is itself sure is getting proven correct.

They finally let Rhaenyra do something that would tear down her image of the hero partially. Isn't it funny how she was so horrified by what happened to Ser Stefan but had no problem leaving 30-40 bastards to die? Sure, she had proof that her wild idea can be done once Addam and Seasmoke bonded but she knew very well that a lot of those people would die and she just didn't really care. Good thing they don't know about Ser Stefan's attempt and her reaction to that. Otherwise, they could easily turn their new dragons on her since she clearly still thinks them lesser.

I liked the way they did the bonding moment between Hugh and Vermithor. Hugh really showed he meant business and earned Vermithor's respect. But on the tail end of that, Ulf's scene was a fucking joke. Silverwing should have eaten him whole. Especially since he stepped in her clutch of eggs. Him getting a taste of what riding a dragon is like was still kind of cute. Also quite a revolutionary step for Westerosi society, though I have a feeling Rhaenyra won't like what that step leads to in the end.

Stop teasing me with mentions of Daeron, show! I am almost 100% convinced that they won't get him in here until season 3 so what's the point? Especially since we already heard the exact same information in the previous episode.

The writing for Alicent is so unserious fr. The way they are letting her wallow in this self-pity because there's nothing else for her to do is atrocious. Especially since the last trigger apparently was the riot in last episode, which is just an insult. What do you mean that all of her sacrifice and service to the realm was just so she would be hated? She's supposed to be beloved by the small folk. I hate the writers so much for the way they're constantly throwing stuff in to make you hate the Greens, and switching plot beats around, giving all the ones that earn sympathy to the Blacks. I've been ranting about that all season, however, so I'll leave it at that.

People that still think Alicent was trying to drown herself are so baffling to me. I could have told you she wasn't going to do it just from the trailer for this episode. It was clearly shown that she took off her dress before entering the lake. (Btw did the music while she was removing her green dress remind anyone else of "The Green Dress" theme from Rhaenyra's wedding? But a lot more solemn and just straight-up resigned? Which would fit perfectly with her stupid arc.) You don't take off your clothes if you mean to drown as it'd be easier to drown with more clothes on. And also, are we talking about the same woman? Alicent? Committing suicide????? After she saved Criston from doing the same???? I know she's on a downward spiral but she was just chilling in that water. That didn't look like someone trying to drown themselves. I guess that "I'm not sure I mean to [return to the city]" line could have sounded suicidal but I have only one thing to say to that: Alicent, get your ass back to the Red Keep right this instant istfg. Aemond just torched Aegon and she and Helaena were attacked and she just... leaves?????? Girl, what about your children? They need you! At least the trailer for the next episode shows that she's back.

People saying that Aemond should leave Helaena alone and not ask her to join the fight, you don't even deserve the RIP. I am different from you aka better. Please, for the love of fuck, get her on Dreamfyre and let her do something at last! They have completely glossed over and erased the effect that her son's death has on her but that at least means that she is totally capable of getting on her dragon and frying a bunch of people. I am seriously hoping that she will!

P.S. I might have known I was going to write a whole essay despite "having nothing to say". *sigh*

[echantedtoon]

Oblivious Crushes Ch1 Sekido And Aizetsu

Just wanted to write something cute and wholesome with the Quadruplets having a crush on oblivious Mitsuri. 

Just for context. If you didn't already know this is a modern au fic and obviously I'm NOT doing a Zohakutan x Mitsuri. This is just a funny what if idea based on the art by @hawnkoi / @hawnkoii on Tumblr. Kinda based within Kimetsu Gauken and will probably be ooc with the four main clones and short but screw it! Let's go!

I'll do a second part with Urogi and Karaku later. 

@hantengus-fuckass-clones

@hantenguclonesimp-minuszoha

"And you carry the two up above here and that's how you get the answer!"

Sweet pretty eyes looked on in obvious happiness from the two who were obviously staring at her with different expressions. Blue Eyes wide with flustered pink scattered about his face as the girl across from him held up the paper with the math problems scribbled all over it some solved while others were waiting to be used. However the blue eyes still stared at her for too long. Maybe at the way her green eyes sparkled like emeralds. Perhaps at how her pink hair brought out her cheeks. Or maybe it was because the receiver of her smile had an obvious crush on the art major. 

Those pretty green eyes blinked again as they didn't answer. "Aizetsu, did you not hear what I said?" 

.... Eventually the other red pair of eyes belonging to an identical brother reached out a hand to slap the other on the shoulder and jolted awake the staring idiot from his stupor.

"I-..Y-YES!!," Aizetsu squealed far too high pitched to his embarrassment. "I-It's pretty. Uh! I mean y-you're pretty- AH!! I MEAN IT'S PRETTY SIMPLE!! THAT'S W-WHAT I MEANT!" 

He quickly fumbled twice and attempted to correct holding up his hands, his face such a red it rivaled his brother's eyes whom just grumbled and facepalmed. However she was completely oblivious to his blushing stare or if she noticed his obvious flustered state, she didn't bring it up and only smiled understandingly.

"It's ok! I know you'll get it soon!" The paper fluttered and made a small noise as she placed it down on the table and scooted it over to him. "Let's go over it again! Pay very close attention to what I say this time. Ok?"

Aizetsu gulped but managed to nod and attempted to look at the paper, however it was hard when the pretty girl they both maybe had just the teeniest tiniest most miniscule of crushes on was literally a few inches away beside you. 

The other had to bite his tongue and keep his irritation silent from the jealousy of his brother gaining her full attention for the moment. He HATED it! It made him feel stupid and childish for having these feelings like a middle school boy upset his crush wouldn't notice him. He hadn't even intended for this to happen! It had just.. happened! It all started with just a small problem with a class. He wasn't ashamed to admit math was stupid and probably not his best subject. Many pencils had been snapped out of anger from staring at numbers and trying to figure out how they go together. It was Aizetsu's idea that he sign up for some of the volunteer tutoring the campus offered. It was stupid of course. He'd never admit he'd need an extra teacher like Karaku's bumbling self needed! ... But when you have a couple Fs staring at your face from the last few assignments, you get a change of thought. Aizetsu, probably pathetically pitying him, offered to go take the sessions with him trying to be supportive-

"I've heard of this one girl everyone's trying to get as a tutor. She's supposed to be super nice and smart so that must count for something. Right? I'll try to sign us up for her sessions."

The very thought made him grit his teeth, and of course leave it to Aizetsu to get them tutoring sessions with the dingiest most hyperactive girl in the universe! He was expecting someone so different. Maybe another teacher. An older student in their final year. Maybe one of them serious bookworm students. But no. When the two of them walked into the library after classes with books and pencils and saw a few other people already studying or browsing through the shelves of the quiet sanctuary-

"OH MY GOSH! HI!!"

"GAH!?"

Many people had turned hearing Sekido's yelp and a woman's voice chirp out loudly. She had literally come out of no where! A blur of green and pink literally bouncing in place startling him into dropping his books and making Aizetsu blink.

"Oh no! I'm so sorry!," she quickly apologized holding up her hands and frowning sadly, "I didn't mean to scare you. I always forget I can be so loud sometimes. Sekido and Aizetsu Hantengu right?" Both had just stared at her, looked at each other unsure, and then Aizetsu turned back opening his mouth but was stopped when she literally grabbed him by the hand smiling again and pulled him forward with surprising strength. "C'mon! I already have a few things planned out for you both!"

She just wouldn't be quiet! If they weren't working on problems then it was a constant stream of chatter directed to both of them. How her day was, asking how their day was, what did they like, her major- It never ended. It was like a whiplash. He wanted to quit then and there..But the looming threat of Fs hanging over his grades made him stop. Admittedly she was annoying but also admittedly she knew a lot of math so it'd be better staying and just ignoring the rest. In one month he was used to it. Wasn't much different than his other two brothers' constant chatter so he was able to drown it out eventually. Aizetsu kept coming even if he didn't really need the tutoring in support and all that...But by the third month he started to get suspicious. 

Why would he keep coming when Aizetsu was an A and B mostly student including in Math?? It made no sense. He already told him countless times before that he didn't want him coming anymore, and unlike their brothers, Aizetsu knew when to back away and respectfully give Sekido his space. Yet every time Sekido showed up to tutoring time Aizetsu was already there present and ready. He was so confused. He never asked on the off chance maybe he was wrong and maybe Aizetsu DID in fact need the extra help, and he never got in the way of Sekido getting tutored so it really wasn't a bother but the confusion was starting to annoy him. At least until the confusion turned into realization. Aizetsu's face turned either a shade of pink or red everytime she spoke to him or touched his hand. And it was only then that it hit Sekido.

Aizetsu. 

Had a CRUSH on their TUTOR.

It shocked him honestly. Unlike their brothers who dated around and himself who went on a few dates, Aizetsu tended to stay away from any relationships but now he was following this girl like a lost puppy. It annoyed him to no end!...But really it wasn't affecting his tutoring and honestly Aizetsu rarely if ever showed interest in anyone romantically so he'd reluctantly let it slide. Within the few months he was there, his grade went up to a D and almost to a C which would be passing enough to him. However Aizetsu still came. He honestly couldn't see why he was. She was nice sure. Always taking time to slowly explain things, bringing food for their long sessions, always talking to them about their day- And he guessed she was pretty. Long hair always in cute bouncing braids, bright emerald eyes, beautiful face- And he supposed her personality was bubbly, kind, cute, maybe a lot oblivious and talkative-...

The double realization a month later ran him over like a truck startling him awake and staring at the ceiling.

".....Oh gods no."

So now here he was, red faced and angry as she guided Aizetsu's hand along with a problem she was explaining. Pretty smile on her face. Both of theirs red. Until he just face planted his into the table with horried annoyance and embarrassment coursing through him.

"Don't be like that, Sekido! I'll show you how to do the next one. Ok?," she happily asked.

"...Yeah. Sure. Whatever." 

Gods help him at this.

[duskyashe]

CAMP NANO DAY 1

Calling All The Monsters part 4 chapter 1

[First] [Previous] [Next] [AO3]

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Jason was more than ready to get this over with. Unlike the others, he'd known he wasn't fully human for years, pretty much ever since he'd come back from the dead. Looking back on it, he'd even known the others were slowly changing, too, he just hadn't had the words. He hadn't known there even were words for the feeling of slowly finding his footing among others that were just as inhuman as himself. Well, other than relief.

As soon as Dick confirmed when and where the kid was willing to host tutoring sessions for all of them ("He said he wanted to work with each of us individually, first, but that he was willing to work with groups of up to three at a time if B was more comfortable with that," Dick said with a thoughtful frown, cowl held loosely in one hand. "Personally, I think the first meeting should definitely be two of us, but the rest should be played by ear, but it's your call, B,") Jason was nearly vibrating out of his own skin in anticipation. Answers to all his questions about himself, from his first fully conscious thought after his dip in the Pits to a reaction he'd had to something just last Tuesday, were just out of his reach and he could feel his frustration and impatience building in the back of his throat. Grimacing, he swallowed the urge to vocalize his feelings before taking a deep breath. It was only an hour more before Condor and Starling would be meeting up with their new tutor, he could hold out that much longer. He could.

"You alright there, Jay?" Steph asked as she entered the cave. Her long blonde hair was braided tightly against the crown of her head in preparation for getting in costume.

He shakily let out the breath he'd taken and nodded in her direction. "Just anxious," he said, meticulously going over his guns yet again. He was mostly suited up, himself, just needing to mask up and slip his gloves on. He'd initially had his gloves on, but cleaning his guns was easier and more grounding barehanded, so off they'd come.

She gave him a searching look. "You really believe Phantom, don't you?" Steph asked after a moment.

Jason paused his movements and let out a sigh. "Yeah. Yeah, I do," he replied, setting his cleaning rag to the side and finally looking directly at her instead of just from the corner of his eye. "Look, I'm pretty sure it was fairly obvious to B, Dick, and Alfie, and maybe Tim saw it, too, but I didn't come back from death the same as I was before. And I don't mean "the trauma of my death changed me"," he said with finger quotes, rolling his eyes at the same time. "I mean I literally didn't come back fully human. At the latest, I've known I wasn't fully human since shortly after everything that happened with Tim, but it's far more realistic to say I've known, at least on some level, ever since I first came out of the Pit." Jason sighed and ran a hand through the tuft of white hair that liked to fall into his eyes. "Looking back, almost every single fight between me and another member of the family, except Damian, started because I either misunderstood something someone said or took insult where none was meant, because I reacted based on instinct and emotion first instead of logic, and while I've gotten better at thinking crap through before I respond, interactions between all of us for the past year and a half have been noticeably less tense and have resulted in a lot less bloodshed. That's not all on me, and neither is it all on the Demon Spawn finally starting to get a clue."

"Alright," Steph said, the gears in her head almost visibly turning. "Putting aside you knowing years ahead of us that it was possible to start out human and end up not, what do you mean by almost every fight between you and a different family member except Damian? Are you saying the fights between you two were that different than all the others?"

He blinked at the blonde in incredulity for a moment. "Steph… Damian's from a warrior culture," he said slowly, praying he didn't need to spell it out for her. She just blinked blankly back at him and he let out a soft curse under his breath. No luck. "Out of the entire family, only four of us have been trained by the League of Assassins, and B didn't exactly keep up with the cultural practices after his stay with them. Cass may have picked up on a lot of those practices from her sperm donor and whatever other trainers he allowed her to train under, but she didn't have all of them and didn't really understand what she had picked up or how to actually apply it. I was the only one who, in Damian's eyes at the time, was cultured and spoke a familiar language. He saw me as someone who was reliable, and a part of me saw him in a similar light due to my own experiences with the League right after my resurrection. Fights with the Demon Spawn were more like training spars while fights with pretty much everyone else were basically honor duels." How has this not come up before now? Are the others just as clueless about this crap? Jason wanted to shake some common sense into some of his siblings, maybe scream a little in frustration. If the only ones who knew anything accurate about his and Damian's relationship were literally just the two of them, he was going to be so disappointed in his family…

Steph looked like she was going to say something more on the subject when Bruce and Babs entered the cave, Babs heading to the Batcomputer while Bruce walked over to the two of them.

"I had a feeling you two would still be down here. Steph, go get changed, I'll help you with your hair pins before you head out, okay?" Bruce asked. Steph gave a sloppy salute and skipped off to the changing rooms, though Jason could tell she wasn't going to let their conversation drop that easily. Bruce took a moment to watch Steph go, and Jason got back to cleaning his guns as he waited for his father Bruce to say his piece. "Are you alright, Jaylad? You usually aren't this anxious before an op, especially an information gathering one like this."

Jason finished rubbing down the last part that needed attention before quickly reassembling his guns. "At the beginning, back when the Demon Spawn first came to live with us, did any of his interactions with the family stand out as different to you?" Jason asked instead. He switched to checking his hidden ammo pouches, making sure everything was topped off. He wasn't expecting a fight tonight, but he needed something to keep his hands occupied.

A hand, scarred and familiar, caught his attention as it came to rest on his own. "I've always known yours and Damian's relationship was special to both of you. You both got each other in ways the others are still trying to understand. And yes, I'm aware a large part of that is due to your time with the League, I'm not as blind to your dealings with your siblings as you all seem to think I am," Bruce said with a chuckle. He brought his other hand up to gently raise Jason's head, making eye contact soon after. "I'm grateful you were able to give Damian a small slice of his first home when I couldn't, Jason. While I wish neither of you had ever been in the situations that lead to you both being with the League, I'm grateful those experiences were able to bring you two closer together as brothers."

He stared at Bruce in shock for a moment before clearing his throat and looking away. "Damn it, B, warn a man before you bring out the emotion talk," he said, stalwartly pretending his eyes weren't misty.

Jason saw Bruce smile out the corner of his eye as his father patted his shoulder with the hand that had been on his cheek. "My bad, sorry about that. Finish getting ready then meet by the Batcomputer for a quick briefing," he said before walking away.

As Jason finished checking his ammo pouches and slid his gloves back on, he couldn't help but smile to himself at the faint, almost tangible, warmth in his chest. Things had really changed in the past year and a half, and for the better, at that.

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Danny was both excited and nervous for what this evening would entail. He'd been obsessively going over everything he'd ever been taught about the various non-human beings that called Earth and its various pocket dimensions home in preparation for this night. He didn't know who he was meeting with first, nor did he know how many of Batman's clan he was meeting with, so he and his Fright had probably gone a bit overboard with potential lesson plans. He just wanted to give the Bats a good first lesson about their various species and the instincts and abilities that are a part of them.

He was waiting at the rooftop shrine where he met with Raven, once more sitting cross-legged about a foot above the roof. It had been almost two weeks since he and Raven had set up these lessons, and he was eager to get started. The current plan was that for the initial lessons, if everything worked out during this first one, Danny would be meeting each publicly known member of the Batclan at that exact shrine for basically what boiled down to essentially bookwork before eventually moving on to hands-on training with their current and future abilities at a different, more secure location. He had to admit, it was a pretty good system for having been developed at the drop of the hat between two beings who didn't even know each other yet.

A sudden burst of flame on the corner of the roof drew Danny's attention to Condor's arrival. Y'know, Danny thought with eyes wide with awe as the hooded form of Condor stalked out of the fire with a predatory grace, little tendrils of fire chasing after him, if we'd known Condor literally appeared in a burst of flames at times, lich would have been the last thing we thought of. It's so freaking obvious he's a phoenix that in hindsight I feel like an idiot.

The faint rustle of feathers against fabric had him turning around just in time to see Starling drop down from on top of the shrine and land in a stooped crouch, feather headdress flowing in the breeze as her head tilted ever so sightly to the side, the hood of her own costume shading her face enough to make the florescent red lenses of her full face mask stand out starkly.

"We aren't late, are we?" A soft, almost lyrical voice asked from behind Danny, brimming with power and potential but holding nothing but eagerness and nervousness. Condor's voice was most definitely masculine, but it was almost impossible to tell if it were tenor, baritone, or bass as it seemed to be all of them at once. It was captivating and bone chilling all at once.

Danny looked over his shoulder, more sure in his assumptions of the species of these two vigilantes than ever before. "Not at all, you're right on time. Shall we begin?"

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HEY EVERYONE!!! So sorry for the wait, I meant to get this chapter finished and published back in May, but, well... That obviously didn't happen (⁠^⁠～⁠^⁠;⁠)⁠ゞ also, you may have noticed something different about this part (⁠ ͡⁠°⁠ ͜⁠ʖ⁠ ͡⁠°⁠) yes, that's right, part 4 of this series has been broken into chapters!!! This will mainly come into play on AO3, as part 4 will be a multi chapter fic over there (as well as actually have a title (⁠；⁠^⁠ω⁠^⁠）) but I thought it was important to acknowledge it here, too!

[smh-yoon]

pein - my name

a/n: was writing an update for my scenario book on wattpad and got a little romantic thinking about this man </3 idk how i will survive writing for konan bc his was already like 1000 words. anyways, he is a little fic with some romantic smut ofc :) this is a little long :D

genre: modern romance, smut, fanfiction

pairing: pein x fem! reader

warnings: some disgustingly soft smut, foreplay (fingering, marking, oral fem receiving, hand job), pein's obvious dick piercings, pet names (literally one), swearing (also literally one), dry humping?

MDNI - nsfw below the cut

Pein was awfully quiet on the way back from the festival, walking beside you, carrying the majority of the things you had received or bought from vendors. He had ignored your insistence to help carry anything, and you hadn't seen such a chivalrous side of him. Granted, you hadn't known him very long at all.

The two of you had started off strangely, days of unintentionally ignoring each other's existence while simultaneously checking in when the other wasn't looking. You'd observed him many times, the piercings along his nose and ears, his painted fingertips and neatly styled hair. Many things about him intrigued you, and you would be lying if you said you didn't jump at the opportunity to go with him when Konan bailed on the both of you last minute. Maybe you hadn't been so discrete in your interest in him.

It wasn't like the two of you hadn't spoken about your feelings, about the sort of arrangement, the two of you had. There was the occasional kissing, sometimes accompanying him while he was off work, lounging around his apartment with him. It had become a routine the two of you quickly sunk in to, one that felt too natural to resist, really.

"Pein?" You almost wanted to whack yourself over your head at the meekness of your own voice, looking at him with concern weighing your brow and your lips pressed into a line.

Whatever reverie he had been lost in was torn away from him slowly, his gaze trailing from the quiet and empty path in front of you to your hands first, then upwards to your face. When you'd said his name to get his attention, you had reached out and grabbed his own, warmth seeping from his hands into your own. Noticing his sudden apprehension at the motion, you went to tug your hand away.

His fingers intertwined with yours, not letting you tug them away from his grasp. When your eyes met his, surprise dancing in your irises, he said nothing, turning his attention back to the path and pulling you along as the two of you began to head back to his apartment again.

The rest of the walk had left your heart beating loudly, pounding in your ears over the quiet croak of cicadas and crunch of the ground beneath you. Your stomach was wrung tight, like you had taken a sock and twisted it until you couldn't anymore, long and thin now, like a snake. It certainly didn't help that he hadn't let your grip drop from his own, his arm brushing against yours with a proximity that didn't exist before.

Sure, you and Pein had kissed before, made out, spent some time together, but none of it had ever felt so intimate. Reaching the elevator to head to his apartment had your nerves pinching themselves, your whole body tingling with anticipation with what would come.

Originally, the plan was that Pein would walk you back to your own apartment, the building just a few minutes from his own, and then he would return by himself for the night and that would be that.

But the minute you had met him at the festival, dressed so sweetly in your kimono and smiling at him so beautifully, he was embarrassed to say that his own heart picked up the pace. You'd remained by his side the whole time, eyes shining at prize booths and food stalls, glowing under the low lantern light. He'd never thought you looked so.. pretty before.

"Pein?" You voice was quiet again, inquiring as the two of you stepped into his apartment, his hand slowly leaving your own as he moved to put all of the things he'd been carrying atop the kitchen counter. With a hum he returned to you where you'd been waiting at the door, the both of you just standing and looking at each other for a few moments. When you had gathered the courage to, heart still hammering in your chest, you took a breath and closed your eyes, looking at him with a more determined gaze.

"I don't think I'm imagining this.. this change between us." For a moment he said nothing, purple eyes staring down into your own as you chewed your bottom lip with nervousness. "Right?"

And then, he shook his head, shuffling a few steps forward as you backed up with each movement of his own, matching his footwork until your back gently bumped against the front door. He had cornered you, his eyes trailing down to your lips slowly. Reaching one hand up and nudging one of his feet between your own, allowing him to shuffle even closer, he tugged your lip from your teeth with his thumb.

"No, you're not imagining anything." You held your breath as he slowly leaned down, brushing his lips against yours for a moment, teasing you, until you took to initiate and wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling him down to kiss you properly.

His lips were warm against your own, slow and soft as he kissed you tenderly. It was completely different than the heated make-out sessions the two of you had shared before, with less gripping and heavy breathing and more him interlaced his hand with yours over his shoulder, slowly moving it to rest against the door and pushing it over your head. Intimate control that although gentle, made you kiss him a little bit quicker, more urgently.

Until now, the two of you agreed to refrain from casual sex, for the sake of being able to maintain a somewhat sane friendship if the two of you decided to never pursue anything further. But you were pretty sure the two of you had just admitted that you wanted to go further than casual, and the occasional grinding and feeling his cock grow under his sweats as you straddled him, his hands groping your breasts and ass through your own clothes as his tongue lapped against your own had been enough to assure you that it wouldn't be a bad idea to sleep with him tonight.

It didn't occur to you that he had been dying to kiss you all night, eager to feel you against him again since the moment the two of you left. He had tried to last out as long as he could, letting you enjoy he night time activities, so when you suggested calling it a night, he was over the moon.

His tongue was gently prodding against your own in seconds, as you eagerly parted your lips, letting out short breaths as he pushed his leg further into the gap of your thighs. The kimono you were wearing was becoming all to restricting, and Pein didn't even flinch as if he read your mind, reaching around to rid of the tie in the back, letting the garment slowly slide open in the front, revealing the cute bra and panty set you'd chosen for the night out. Moving again, his thigh pressed against your barely clothed center, making you suck in a breath as he lips crashed onto yours once more.

At some point, you had tugged on the tie around his waist, and he took the liberty of removing it himself, letting his own kimono slide open and reveal his bare chest underneath.

The feeling of your bare skin pressing against each other seemed to speed things up, Pein pulling you into him, grinding onto his thigh with his free hand on your waist, your own hand running over his chest and abdomen, feeling it flex and tense under your touch. His kisses hadn't let up, and now they were beginning to feel familiar, burning with desire.

"Pein," you gasped, his thigh catching your clit just right through your underwear. His jaw clenched when he willed himself to pull away for a moment, kicking his shoes off and waiting as you followed suit, quick to lead you into his bedroom where he resumed kissing you, both hands on either side of your face as he led you backwards until the bed was just at the back of your knees. Your hands left each other only briefly to shed the rest of the kimono's off your body, now standing in just your bra and underwear and he in his black boxers.

From just the quick glance you managed, Pein's cock was already straining through the fabric, making heat pool between your legs. As if he hadn't already made you hot and bothered enough, he reached around and unclipped your bra with one hand, his hand meeting your waist again as you flung it somewhere unworried.

His warm hand slowly trailed upwards, along the side of your ribs, his thumb brushing just below your breast. He moved his hand to your middle, sliding it up the apex of your chest and gently placing his hand around your neck, squeezing lightly for only a moment and then sliding it back down, where he grasped your breast gently.

The sensation of his hands against you skin, contrasting with the cold air your skin had been exposed to made your nipples perk up, and you felt a grin slide onto his lips as he pinched and teased, listening to you hum in response.

Just as you had begun to scheme to get him back for his toying with you, he nudged you back slowly, the both of you sliding up the bed until your shoulder blades rested against the pillows. He settled in between yours legs, eyes nearly rolling back as you felt his length against your cunt within the confines of the last article of clothing both of you donned.

Pein liked to believe he was being awfully patient, with the way you arched into him when his chest grazed against you nipples, pulling himself from your swollen lips to nip and kiss against your neck, resisting the urge to roll his hips into you. Though, it seemed like you weren't holding out any better, hips bucking when he did shift in between your thighs, your knees hooked around his waist and hands on his shoulder and in his hair.

He took his time, gently wrapping his lips around whatever expanse of skin he saw fit, listening to your heavy breathing and occasional whine when he reached down to play with your breasts once more. Something about the way you craned your neck to allow him more room to leave his marks on your neck, red and bruising, made him finally give in as he slowly rolled his pelvis forward.

Your nails dug into his back, hips bucking against him and your eyes fluttering as you let out a small and airy moan of his name. He loved hearing his name drip from your mouth.

A wet spot had grown on the front of your panties, and you might be embarrassed that he'd noticed when he grinned against the skin of your neck, sending a shiver down your spine, after he pressed against it with the tip of his cock, still in his boxers.

The world was spinning, impatience oozing into your bones, seeping out through your skin wherever Pein touched you, and you wanted him to touch you everywhere. One hand was holding your waist as he continued to gyrate against you, the other came to cup the side of your face as he lowered his lips to your collarbone, finding more skin to bite and suck upon.

For a moment, you thought you'd gotten so worked up that you might just cum practically untouched, but when he stopped, eyes fluttering shut and head drooping as he clenched his jaw, swallowing thickly, you knew this wasn't just affecting you.

He wasn't sure he could wait any longer, and so he took a moment to kiss your lips again, adjusting so he was sitting on his legs, leaning on the balls of his feet with his thighs under yours. His fingers slowly trailed over the dip of your collarbones, down your breasts and over your stomach, dipping slowly into the front of your underwear. You were so glad you had picked to wear these, seeing as they provided enough room for Pein's hand.

Without hesitation, his middle finger dipped into the arousal that had dripped from you, using it to draw circles into your clit with a feather light touch. He stopped kissing you for a moment to gauge your reaction, watching your brows furrow as a quiet moan left your mouth, pretty eyes fluttering open to look at him through a haze of arousal.

When he was sure you'd had enough of his teasing, bucking into his hand, whining under his touch, he slid a finger into you, almost amazed at the wetness and warm enclosed around him. It made him almost rash to get his dick inside you, but he resisted for a moment more, sliding another one into you and pumping slowly, fingertips curling against you. It seemed he still hadn't garnered enough of a reaction, as his other hand tugged your panties half-heartedly down more, and he adjusted to dip his head down, tongue coming out to lightly stroke your clit.

His eyes clenched shut at the taste of you, and the sound of the moan you let out, hands twisting into your hair. You tasted so addicting, and he found himself delving into you like a feast, tongue moving quicker against your clit, dipping in to mix with the work of his fingers.

It was embarrassingly fast to feel your orgasm approaching already, and you clenched around his fingers to try and avoid letting it tear through you, gasping out, "Wait!"

Immediately he ceased, gently removing his fingers and lifting his head as you tried to catch your breath, skin burning as you watching him lick the taste of you off his bottom lip. He opened his mouth, brows creased with the worry that he'd done something wrong when you blurted, "Not yet."

You weren't sure you liked the smug look that came over his face, subtle, but still there. He slid your panties down your legs the rest of the way, letting them fall from his hands to where you'd discarded the rest of your clothes. He made a mental note to buy you a set he liked so he could keep it while you were gone, thinking of you after having you in it of course.

He was once again snapped out of his reverie thanks to you as you reached forward to rub your hand against the bugle in his boxers, his eyes closing and head tilting back slightly as you began to slowly pull them down. To help you out, he sat up on his knees, no longer resting against the balls of his feet.

Biting your bottom lip again, a wave of excitement washed over you as the continued to tug his underwear over his hips. You shouldn't have been so surprised, but your jaw went slack once you'd pulled it over the head of his cock, finding a piercing you hadn't expected. It would've been a good thing for your mouth to be open if you were using it, only growing more surprised as you revealed the rest of his length, even more piercings along his shaft.

They surely must've hurt, but they looked fine, small silver caps nearly flush against the skin. His cock hit his stomach when you pulled them down to reveal all of him, red and twitching as a thick vein ran in-between the piercings.

It seemed as though you gawked too long and he'd gotten impatient, reaching and grabbing the base of his dick, tugging at letting out a hot sigh at the feeling. Precum oozed from the tip, making you swallow thickly at the sight of him pleasuring himself in front of you. You weren't too sure about taking him into your mouth, as you had no idea how to avoid the piercings yet, so you gently wrapped your hand around the tip, matching the shallow strokes of his own hand. He let out a short moan, eyes closing as he twitched in your hand, only encouraging you to wrap around him a little tighter.

"Pein," you whimpered this time, and he was sure he hadn't heard you say his name enough already, determined to get more cries out of you. Removing his hand, and taking the hint and removing your own, Pein resumed to his position sat against his ankles, in between your legs, just inches from your dripping heat.

"Do you want me to use a condom?" Pein already knew he would prefer to take you raw, but it really wasn't up to him, and he was already straining enough to get his dick inside you.

But when you shook your head no, gaze shooting to his dick and then back up to him, looking at him through those lashes of yours, he had to fight the urge to slip as deep into you as he could. Instead, he intertwined your fingers in his own with his right hand, using the left to slip the head of his cock over your wetness, running it over your clit and catching the entrance of your pussy.

Wasting no more time torturing the both of you, he slowly pressed the tip of his cock into you, watching your face contort at the stretch and at the strange feeling of his piercings against your walls.

Bottoming out took less time than he thought, with how wet and ready for him you were. The both of you let out a sigh of relief when his pelvis met yours, giving him a small smile and him leaning down to press a short kiss against your lips. "All good baby?"

You nodded, giving him permission to bring his hips back slowly, the balls from their piercings grazing against the inside of you and making you twitch as the sensation. Both of you had just started and you were already ready to fall apart. The piercings were going to be more than a pleasant surprise.

It took him little to no time to pick up the pace, watching you close your eyes and sink into the pillows and sheets as he took care of you, moans and sighs leaving your lips at the pleasure sparking through your body, sending prickling feelings over your vulva and making your nipples perk up once again.

Once Pein was sure you were okay with his size, given he was thick and long, not that you were ever going to complain, he slowly untangled his fingers from yours, sitting up straight and placing both hands on your hips as an anchor as he thrusted into you. The newfound sense of control and fluidity made him able to thrust faster into you, grinding upwards as he slid his cock in and out of your cunt.

"Fuck," you whined, hands going up to grasp your own breasts, Pein's gaze snapping to the sight of your pleasure wrung face as you touched yourself with him inside of you.

Letting out a groan of his own, his chin fell to his chest as he felt jolts go through him as the feeling of his piercings catching inside of you. Grinding his teeth together as he felt his stomach twist, he had to fight the need to cum inside you the second you clenched around him, a yell of his name coming from you as he grazed against that special spot inside you.

With new determination to last until your orgasm, Pein drilled into you with a new force and speed, grazing against that spot every time as your eyes rolled back.

You orgasm could've come quick enough, sure that you'd start crying in the midst of the pleasure he was giving you when you felt it begin to build. Everything was beginning to be too much, tightening around his cock made his thrusts more intense for the both of you. His heavy balls were meeting the skin of your ass, his stomach flexed as he continued his mission to make you cum.

The catalyst came when he reached down to play with your clit, puffy and wet from the mix of juices, thumb rubbing it up and down as quickly as he could.

"Pein!" you cried, eyes clenched shut and jaw falling open wide as your back arched, legs trembling around his waist as the pleasure washed over you in harsh waves, still sending shockwaves as he continued to thrust into you the same way he had.

"Out or in?" His voice was strained, staccato'd groans leaving his mouth, the pitch rising as he neared his own high. The feeling he got from being inside of you, raw and wet and hot, with you laid out before him, saying nothing but his name, it was all too good.

"Inside, cum inside." You were still letting out cries, overstimulated by the sheer force of Pein's cock pistoning in and out of you.

Pein let his head tilt back, eyes closed as he spilled inside you, milking out the last few thrusts he could manage, a groan of your name leaving his lips. If he'd done that any time before now, you were sure you'd have jumped on him right then and there.

The sight of his heaving chest, glistening with sweat, his lips darkened as swollen like your own, his tongue darting out to wet them, veins bulging in his arms, he just looked so irresistible. Surely if you weren't so tired from the intensity of your orgasm, you would offer to ride him just to see it all again.

He slipped himself out of you, cock covered in milky white, his cum spilling out of your hole slowly. His eyes basked in the sight before him, you flushed and panting, painted with his cum as you finished crying out his name. Surely, if he wasn't so tired from fucking you so intensely, he'd offer to let you ride him.

"C'mon," he tapped the outside of your thighs, watching you shakily sit up on the bed. "Let me clean you up."

<3 <3 <3

[theghostbunnie]

A concept I was yapping about in a server a few months ago I think I should share here copy n paste style bc I kinda cooked w it

Nurf thinking him and Ered were good friends but Ered veiwing him with the same closeness she views the rest of the campbell kids like "yeah we're all friends" but he's like but I thought *we* were friends together, like Nerris and Harrison and Preston? Like Max Nikki and Neil? Like -

"Dude you're just listing parties of three,"

"I'm listing people who were *closer* Ered"

And she's just secretly awkward like wtf do you want from me? What do you want me to say? You were..a different kind of annoying than the rest sometimes, maybe less? Constantly trying to challenge me to bets n shit was atleast entertaining?? I'm not gonna poor my heart out to you just because you ask me to. Wanna go have therapy in the open woods for children to laugh at??? Wanna make a big blow out scene??

But she doesn't actually SAY any of that she just thinks it and gives him absolutely nothing to work with and Nurf just feels more alone than before, literally all he wants is a friend and the one he thought he had apparently didn't view him to the same extent and it makes him feel so shitty.

And maybe he could chalk it up to "Ered's just like that" but if I may be really silly and say in this concept she's become friends with Tyrone n Mitchell already Nurf just feels straight up *replaced* and takes it out on those two FREQUENTLY keeping his real feelings as to why he's being a dick a secret for once.

He goes to punch somebody else and it's a whole monologue first how this is bc of his dadBut he just *insults* these guys and doesn't even laugh at his own words like he usually does after.

And it doesn't even!!!!! Effect them!!! And it pisses him off worse!!! Even using the most petty tactic he still can't get any of them to hurt like he does and it's so frustrating.

Mitchell n Tyrone (I'm picturing this was a years worth ongoing problem or they were already in a HS AU)) pick up on something being off and finally get Ered to give some information and like girl no wonder the guy has been a total angry piss baby I'd feel terrible too if the one person who was the most regularly talking to me and sitting with me all summer only saw me just as important or lack there of as everyone else.

"You're saying it like I hate him, I don't, but I am getting irritated with this whole thing.. I'm not gonna start being MORE of his friend because he's throwing a fit"

Tyrone's like "but he's really not..? He's been leaving you alone now if you hadn't noticed, and mostly just saying the odd insult to us."

Mitchell: "You don't have to be his friend if you don't want to be that's your right."

Ered: "THANK you. Finally someone says it."

Mitchell: "But he gave you *his* friendship for a very long time and you did sort of spit on it. There's kind of a obvious reason he respected you enough to never make you a target"

"Because I'm technically top dog and he's two notches away from bottom dog, socially atleast."

"Because he *cherished your companionship,* Ered. He's pretty fuckin' equal opportunist if you haven't noticed."

Ered, starting to realize: "..............crap" bc!! Damnit Nurf is a sweetie under all his layers and she knows that and the guilt of hurting him is kinda weighing.

Ered leaves to go talk with him and Tyrone and Mitchell have what I think is a little funny interaction where Mitchell light heartedly is making a comment on the exchange they just had.

" 'top dog' no way she just said that, what is this, prison?? Did I wake up in *prison*?"

Tyrone, just as confused, speaking over him agreeingly: I know I know

And Nurf's just sitting in his room when his mom announces he has a friend here and he's like 'whuh' and Ered just. Steps in and stands there.

".. what do you want.?" Bc when she DOES talk to him to hang out, it's something she wants to do, *he's* stopped initiating things. And Ered has multiple people she's "not really close with but she calls over to do specific hobbies with" since she has so many hobbies.

"Just here to talk."

Okay now she has his attention did somebody fucking die what

"I haven't been a good friend to you." She states it pretty neutrally and flatly like everything she says

Nurf's just looking at her. Girl it is a Thursday afternoon on god's green earth he is trying to do his homework rn. Half of the awnsers atleast.

She doesn't even say sorry. That was just the statement she knew was true now. "If you would like,,.. I can be a better one." She looks over once then nods her head simply.

"You're offering to be my friend just straight up like that?" Is this kindergarten.

"Feel free to decline, man." She shrugs, still neutral.

"No,no I'm not saying that" he puts his pencil down. "Can I just get an honest awnser why I wasn't one to you before?"

Ered sighs. "Promise not to tell?" Speaks a little quieter.

And he is listening SO HARD!!!!!!!

Ered inhales rlly slowly, sticks her hand out to reintroduce herself.

"Meredith Miller.

__Everything I do is to protect myself.__"

He just makes a little bit of a face like go on elaborate on that for me he is so confused and so intrigued and by what he's ASSUMING so far should he be offended.

"You're alot better person than you were back then, people don't give you enough credit for that."

The simultaneous embarrassment of remembering his hardcore bully era and the flattery of a genuine compliment like that being so rare from Ered to anyone.

"And I couldn't trust you that well then as I think I could now. Most of my friends sort of just learn this out themselves slowly but you're not going to unless I spell it out I guess. I'm not a vulnerable or open person, like, at all? Everything I do is to hide I'm flawed. Even *capable* of flaw. I build a reputation, so when I do make little mistakes, or have little quirks, people think I'm doing it ironically, or something, so people just *always* have the best assumptions of me. I abbreviate words over text I don't know how to spell off the top of my head and people think I'm just being cool. I still like how Capri moon tastes and people think I'm just too cool to even care what I have to drink because I'm so above judgement."

"So you're just.. constantly pretending?"

"No, ..sort of."

"I do it so I *can* be myself without it tanking how people veiw me, an actual genuine image of what I am I just work hard to make sure people are *nice* about it. Most of them atleast." Like a safety net built from a good reputation.

"Bigger mistakes though.. people turn on me.

And you were always turned against everyone, dude"

"Sorry.."

"It's fine. We've all got our methods." She understands his behavior comes from a really similar place.

"Nothing I said leaves this room." Pats her hand to his doorway twice as she walks out of it. "See you around."

"..... CAN WE GO BOWLING SATURDAY?"

Ered sort of stops herself mid-way going out the front door. "...Sure!" And is a little surprised he already wants to chill with her

[alicepao13]

Hudson and Rex S04E12 - No Man Is An Island - Part C

Again, bargaining a lot on this man's conscience. Cops aren't these moral beings, they are humans that have been given a gun and badge, and with that gun and badge comes power. Give most humans power and you'll see what happens. Spoiler alert: It's usually bad. And yeah, in this case Joe will convince Nigel to do the right thing but that's not how it would have gone in most cases.

And then he even saves Henry's life. Whatever.

lol

Rex is our play. Always and forever.

*chanting* More of this. More of this. More of this.

"Is that what you call backup? Two cops and a dog?" Well, we didn't exactly have a SWAT team ready on your ten-people island, sir.

"And I didn't even get my fur wet."

How we go from this to, "I owe it to myself to see where [the thing with Michael] goes", I don't know.

You'd literally left your gun behind you, Joe.

Cue the heartbreak. Oh, Charlie. Why can't you open your mouth?

"My ship just crashed in the rocks."

"After being so wrapped up in... work... for so long". Why are you lying? That's not what was happening. You had pretty much inserted yourself into Charlie's life (what we saw, anyway), which is not the best phrase I can pick since I don't mean to imply it was unwelcome, and when that seemed to be leading somewhere, you pulled away. Of course, I can concoct a theory that Sarah couldn't see it leading anywhere, but as an audience we did see it slowly leading somewhere. So which is it?

You can see Charlie masking his initial disappointment in seconds. He wanted to talk about that almost kiss, he believed that they could have an honest discussion but as soon as Sarah told him that, he either thought she didn't feel the same way or that she had been conflicted and she chose Michael anyway. In either case, he wasn't going to make it difficult for her, so he chose to lie too.

Alexa, play "I Love the Way You Lie".

Jesse, you are a pathological cockblocker. Although these two are doing fine on their own, too.

You... stupid... ugh!!! Stop showing her the opposite of what you feel!

And you can see Charlie beating himself up for not opening his mouth here. Which, you know, if people weren't convinced before that he was LYING, they should be now. It's not exactly a micro-expression.

I don't know how I can feel sad for him and at the same moment want to wring his neck. Why are you sentencing yourself to misery?

Doesn't everyone stare longingly at their platonic friend as they're leaving for a trip with someone else?

I enjoy this episode every time. I think I watched it quite a bit before they got together too. Yes, it's angsty. Yes, someone should have played "Say Something" in that last scene. Like, come on, what are you going to spend money on, another explosion? Give me something to get me to my knees. I'm an angst whore, especially when I can see where this is heading. And I actually did enjoy the journey this time, because a few other times in other instances I confess that I hadn't (see Castle).

They actually surprised me by talking about the almost kiss moment at all. I thought they'd just ignore it. Not that they were honest about what they wanted at all but it was something. And I don't know if that was a disappointing turn for some, I honestly don't really remember how the comments skewed for this episode. For me, it was always obvious that they chose to ignore their feelings there.

I'm glad they didn't kiss in the island, given Charlie's feelings for cheating. I don't think he would have wanted to be the reason Sarah would have to deal with those messy feelings and extra guilt. And while Sarah had been swept up in the moment, I know she wouldn't have wanted it to be like that either. Although, maybe then we'd have gotten to see their first kiss *grumble*

I think part of the mistrust about whether the writers were actually willing to go there came from the fact that this show is so very much episodic and up to a point there's not much progression or continuity. Again, Peter Mitchell did a lot of things on that front in the span of two seasons, for this show anyway. But the ground work for Charah comes mostly from S3. Not that there weren't moments (a lot of them) in the first couple of seasons. There are. But they didn't seem to lead anywhere.