#me as i draw this: why the hell did i make her wear a bird mask with beak this shit is so hard

[gomzdrawfr]

hands off

[dontmixpaintinyourcoffee]

More Lodgers! I think Mosley is my favorite of this batch, both pose and design-wise. I'm drawing them in order of introduction, and it's almost like a cool little Easter egg hunt looking for different angles and full-body panels of characters that don't show up a ton.

(Edit! I updated the drawings, it not matching the other set was bothering me)

Thoughts under the cut again

Back at it again with the goggles and gloves! Except for Mr. Griffin which is interesting. Could be for lots of reasons, like pulling descriptions from The Invisible Man, or maybe his work doesn't require a lot of physical risk, or maybe they just didn't want all the Lodgers to feel too samey. He's still aligned with the Lodgers aesthetically through the apron, which Bird also wears. Neat! I'm very entertained by the different types of eyewear too. Some have goggles, some have binoculars, and some have layers of magnifiers like jeweler's glasses (of course I always think of the Toy Story 2 scene). I'm sure some of them have super specialized equipment too, like Maijabi probably has some sort of spectral filter lens or something.

God what I would give to pick Sage Cotugno's brain about some of these designs because I am fascinated by Mosley. They technically didn't have to go through and give each lodger such a strong sense of personality but I adore that they did! Mosley in particular reminds me of Mole from Atlantis, with the scarf and the multi-layered goggles and the digging. And Helsby wouldn't be out of place at the Benbow Inn! Know that I mean this as incredibly high praise, I could talk about the designs in Treasure Planet for days. Point is that both those movies have an incredibly strong visual identity, primarily through the character designs and architecture, and this comic feels the same way to me.

My personal favorite rogue scientist is next up! I love her design so much and I'm so excited to draw her. Also, how in the hell do you end up with "make spy bugs" as your job?? And where can I sign up?? Miss Flowers please

Mosley has my favorite pose but Griffin has my favorite face. Look at him. Grouchy bastard

I realize that I've been labeling all the Lodgers as "doctor" but it's entirely possible that some of them probably don't have doctorates. Y'know. The thing that makes you a doctor. Then again Frankenstein dropped out of college and we all call him "Dr" so I don't see why these fine people shouldn't get the same respect! Dunno if this applies to Victoria Frankenstein though. She's crazy enough to have also finished college while all the other shit was happening.

(yes I know that Frankenstein technically had all the knowledge and the expertise and was miles ahead of literally everybody else and only dropped out because he was busy proving that death is merely a temporary state and God means nothing in the face of human ingenuity and all that, but the bastard still didn't graduate and also he's an asshole so I'm gonna pick on him)

[deathmetalunicorn1]

I think it would be really cute if someone calls Eri is ‘Apple Blossom’ because those are the flowers that turn into the yummy apples she loves (Lucifer or Charlie from Hazbin Hotel)

-You were considered an…usual citizen of Hell, mainly because you didn’t belong there. You belonged in Heaven, but someone was able to kidnap you from Heaven and spirited you away to Hell, hiding you there.

-You managed to slip away one day, running, trying to do whatever it took to hide away from this scary man who had a bird like head, who was torturing you for your unique abilities to rewind things, a healing ability to put it simply.

-It was Charlie who found you, thinking you were adorable, and Vaggie immediately knew that you had been taken from Heaven, telling her girlfriend and the two agreed to hide you at the hotel.

-Needless to say, the other residents of the hotel were quite shocked to meet you, as you were such a sweet and gentle child, despite the pain and torture you endured.

-Angel immediately took you out shopping and when you came back you were wearing matching outfits, as he said you had to always look fabulous!

-Husk did his best to avoid you, not wanting to taint you by accident, but he was surprised when Angel didn’t. Husk always makes sure you have juice, never letting you have any booze, and he will sit there and let you pet his wings, trying to ignore your sweet words on how fluffy he is!

-Niffty adores you, finding you to be the cutest, most adorable thing in existence and she loves when you ask if you can help her in the kitchen. You can always help her, but she makes sure you stay away from the knives.

-Charlie became like a big sister to you, doting on you, teaching you everything she can, which also includes musical numbers, much to Vaggie’s ‘amusement’ but she’s very protective of you.

-Vaggie is like a guard dog with you, she knows that the one hunting for you is still out there, and she isn’t willing to risk your life or safety in the slightest. Vaggie lets you play with her with hair all the time, as Charlie has been teaching you how to braid.

-Alastor was very apprehensive about being around you, he would always send you to one of the others, not willing to deal with you, mainly because he had no idea what to do with a child. He wasn’t mean to you or anything, he would just pat your head softly and tell you to go find Charlie or whoever was in the area.

-You were peeking around the corner, holding something to your chest, looking for the Radio Demon himself, wandering the hotel’s public areas where you’ve seen him before.

-You spotted Alastor up ahead and your eyes lit up, a little smile coming to your lips as you trotted after him.

-Alastor heard your little footsteps, “I thought I heard someone following me. Are you looking for Charlie?”

-You shook your head, “I was looking for you Alastor.” He seemed surprised by your words, bending at the waist, looking a bit menacing but you weren’t bothered, “Oh and why is that my little apple blossom?”

-Your eyes went wide at his words, sparkling lightly before you held up what you were carrying, a crayon drawing of Alastor, holding it out to him, “I wanted to give you this since you’re always so nice to me!”

-He was a little confused, not remembering being nice to you, as he would always send you away, but such is the innocence of a child as he took the drawing, seeing that you did your best to capture his essence.

-His wide smile never left his face as he leaned over and patted your head again, “Thank you Y/N.” you beamed up at him before you scurried off, going back to your drawing supplies so you could make one of Angel next.

-Alastor couldn’t help but look down at the drawing, feeling something, he wasn’t sure what it was, in his chest, as he returned to his tower, pinning the picture on the back of his door before moving to the window.

-What an odd child you were.

[itsnotzka]

Hi diddly ho!

This is just a small, simple piece. It was originally meant to be a bonus chapter for another story of mine, but somewhere along the way (two damn years later lol), I changed my mind 😌 But I finished it, thanks to that!

No warnings, no spoilers.

Read the whole thing on Ao3:

(or here, under the cut ↓)

“I have no idea how you do it,” she murmurs, her voice seems to smooth away the edges of my wandering thoughts.“When you make coffee, it tastes different.”

The cold floor bites at my bare feet, a contrast to the warmth coiling up from her steaming mug. Morning sunlight spills through the window in golden ribbons, dust motes drifting lazily in their glow. A distant car horn blares once, then again. A dog barks. The coffee machine clicks off. The tiles are freezing. Why am I barefoot? I don’t like being barefoot.

“Different?” I echo, dragging my focus back to her. “Different how?”

Her lips curl downward in a small, almost imperceptible frown as she taps her chin, lost in thought.

I notice she’s wearing my shirt. It hangs loosely on her, and the dark fabric seems to deepen the color of her eyes—like the sky just before a storm. I wonder, does she choose my shirts because she likes them, or simply because she knows I do?

What did she really mean by ‘different���?

Another bark, this time louder. That’s the neighbor’s dog, isn’t it? The one that doesn’t like me. Why doesn’t she like me? I tried to be nice. I even offered treats once. Perhaps she senses I don’t quite belong here. Somehow, even in this familiar neighborhood, I can’t shake the feeling of being an outsider.

“Different,” she repeats with a chuckle, then hums as she takes a slow sip. “Good different. Makes me want to make you make me coffee every day.”

I laugh at her words. Her eyes twinkle over the rim of the mug like little galaxies caught in the morning light. Wasn’t I meant to take out the trash? My feet protest the cold floor with every step, and the pale tiles shimmer in the morning light. I pause as the chill reminds me to find my socks. Did I even turn on the heating? 

I should remember about the trash. 

Galaxies. They’re still staring at me.

“Oh?” I drag out a chair to sit in front of her.

I freeze before I do. Coffee. I had a cup of coffee, too. I glance around the kitchen. 

Why do I always lose my coffee?

The dog barks once more. Does she sense I’m thinking about her? Why exactly doesn’t that dog like me? Other dogs don’t mind me. Maybe it’s the neighbors. Maybe it’s because I blocked their car once. I apologized, didn’t I? Does a sincere apology not count for anything these days? Maybe I should’ve brought them cookies. Do they even like cookies? What if they’re allergic?

“Looking for this?” Her voice suddenly draws me back.

I blink, focusing again on the present.

She nods toward the coffee machine. Right next to it, my mug sits, steam curling from its surface like a smug little specter.

Logical, isn’t it? 

I exhale sharply. “Right! Thank you,” I laugh, reaching for ir. “Sneaky little devil, always hides from me.”

“For sure! Remember to never underestimate the power of a cup of coffee, hun!”

I tip the mug a little too much. Coffee spills over the edge, splattering onto the cold tile, some onto my bare feet. I groan, doubly annoyed—first at the mess, then at my lack of socks. Though maybe it’s for the best. Wet socks are a special kind of hell.

Like the one reserved for people who talk in theaters.

The stain spreads, seeping into the grout like ink bleeding across a page. A Rorschach test in shades of caffeine. What does it look like? A bird? No, a dog. Neighbor’s dog. Maybe the vague outline of some country. If I tilt my head—

I step forward and plant my foot directly in the spill. Warm liquid squelches against my skin.

Fantastic. 

With a sharp exhale, I set my mug down and grab a paper towel, swiping at the floor in a few quick motions.

Somewhere in the background, she hums. A soft melody, half-formed, like a thought slipping just out of reach. I know that song. I know it, don’t I? What is it? It’s on the tip of my tongue. No, not my tongue—my brain . Or maybe both. Can something even be on the tip of your brain?

I crumple the paper towel and move to toss it. The trash can groans open. It’s full.

Of course it is.

Remember. The damn. Trash!

With a sigh, I lower myself onto the chair across from her. She watches me over the rim of her mug, one brow slightly raised. That look—amused, but knowing.

She reaches for my hand, pats it gently. Her skin is warm, smooth against mine. Then, still humming, she stands and drifts toward the counter.

Right. My damn coffee.

I sigh again. She just smiles, winking.

Apparently, it’s one of those days, where everything seems to slip away.

"Isn't that yours?" She sets the mug in front of me.

I offer a tired, bitter smile but only nod, wrapping my fingers around the warmth.

I take a sip—too hot. It burns my tongue just enough to be annoying, and I don’t react fast enough to stop it. That’ll bother me all day. Or five minutes. Hard to tell.

She’s still humming. I know that song. I should ask, but I don’t. I don’t know why. 

I want to figure it out on my own. 

The air smells like coffee and sunlight. Can sunlight have a smell? Not really. But I swear it does. Warm, golden, like something familiar, something comforting. Maybe it’s just dust warming up in the beams of light. Isn’t it too much dust, though? I should clean the apartment.

Didn’t we just clean?

‘Just’ is an exaggeration, I realize. It was over a week ago.

She shifts in her seat, pulling her legs up, knees to her chest, mug cradled between both hands. She always holds her coffee like that. I wonder if it’s for warmth or just a habit. I wonder if she even notices she does it.

“What?” she asks, eyes crinkling with amusement.

“What?” I echo.

“You’re staring with that look of yours. Like a deer in the headlights.”

Oh. I am.

“I—” I start, but the words don’t show up. They scatter before they reach my tongue.

I lift my coffee again. Cooling now, but still warm.

“Just… admiring the view,” I say, half-joking. Except it isn’t a joke at all.

She snorts, shaking her head. "Smooth."

A flicker of a smirk, barely there before she hides it behind the rim of her mug. The shirt, my shirt, slips off one shoulder as she shifts, and just like that, my thoughts derail completely.

The way fabric folds. The way collarbones look in morning light. The asymmetry of it all. One side bare, the other covered. Isn’t asymmetry more interesting? Almost symmetrical but not quite—does that make something more beautiful? Or unsettling? And why? I should Google that later.

I wanted to figure out something else, didn’t I?

What was it?

Oh. Right. The song.

"What are you humming?" I ask before I think.

She blinks. "Huh?"

"The song. You’ve been humming it for the last five minutes."

Or longer?

"Have I?" A pause, then a soft chuckle. "No idea."

I swallow hard. No, no, no. 

That kills me. My whole body protests the lack of an answer. Now that I know she doesn’t know, it starts driving me insane.

It’s stuck in my head now—the melody I know but can’t name.

Another sip of coffee. The warmth is nice. Comforting. It does taste good. 

She tilts her head, watching me. “You okay?”

I nod. A little too fast. A little too mindlessly. “Yeah. Why?”

“You just…” Her gaze softens. “You look like you’re somewhere else.”

I chew on that. She’s not wrong. I’m always somewhere else. And right here. And nowhere, all at once. Like my brain is a crowded room with too many conversations happening at the same time, and I can only half-listen to each one. Too many things to think about, and the seconds are so short.

I shake my head, as if that’ll clear it. “Just thinking.”

“About?”

Loaded question. About everything and nothing all at once—the smell of the air, the half-remembered song stuck in my head, the chill of the tiles beneath me, the existential dread of forgotten Google searches. The fact that I still haven’t taken out the trash. How my tongue still tingles from the too-hot coffee.

How do I even explain that? It’s physically impossible.

So I just shrug. “Just… stuff.”

She laughs—quiet but knowing. Her fingers brush against mine. “That’s a dangerous pastime, isn’t it?”

I exhale a small laugh through my nose.

She reaches across, tracing slow circles over my knuckles with her thumb. Soft. Warm. The noise in my head doesn’t stop, not entirely, but it dims it, like a radio turned down instead of off.

My coffee is the perfect temperature now, that fleeting sweet spot between scalding and lukewarm. I savor it.

Then—like a stray lightning bolt—clarity strikes.

“Hurry, Hurry.”

She blinks. “Excuse me?”

“The song,” I say, triumphant. “It’s ‘Hurry, Hurry’. Air Traffic Controller, isn’t it?”

Her eyebrows shoot up. “It is?”

I nod, grinning. 

Her eyebrows lift in surprise, then she lets out a soft laugh. "Oh, yeah... I guess so. I’d never know! Must’ve heard that one from you the other day."

I exhale, relieved. The damn itch in my brain is soothed. The mystery is solved. No more nagging sensation, no more half-formed thought lurking just out of reach. A small, ridiculous victory, but still—a victory.

The world outside still stirs. Another honk, a door slamming, the faint murmur of a passing conversation. The neighbor’s dog, ever-vigilant, yaps twice, as if to remind me she’s still there. Still hating me.

I’m a cat person, anyway. 

I take another sip of coffee, stretching out the moment of this unexpected peace. 

Maybe that’s what I’ve been missing. The moments in between, the ones that don’t shout for attention but still matter. I should focus on that. The way coffee tastes in the morning. The way her voice lingers in my head even after she’s stopped speaking. The way she looks in my shirts. The way days feel softer with her in them. The way she never judges me. 

Well, except for the occasional muffled laugh when I bump into a doorframe. Or that slight flicker of disapproval in her eyes when she realizes I’ve forgotten to eat.

I should tell her that. Not now, but sometime.

She shifts, stretching her legs out under the table until her toes brush against my foot. A small, absent-minded thing, but it makes me smile.

“Yeesh!” She gasps, jerking back. Your feet are freezing!”

“Are they?” I chuckle, wiggling my toes. Or trying to, at least. I can barely feel them. “Didn’t notice.”

She shoots me a knowing look, equal parts unimpressed and amused. Maybe she can read my mind? Some of it, at least. 

Then, with a clink, she sets her coffee down and leans in, propping an elbow on the table.

“Oh, honey, before I forget,” she glances at me. “Did you remember to take out the trash? It’s been full for two days now.”

Shit. 

[funky-sea-cryptid]

ough okay hi everyone i'm finally fucking posting callakirsch for lyra's 1k halloween event @blackclover-emc

interactions are welcome but don't feel pressured :3c

word count: 704 words

pairing: kirsch x oc (calla m. eucidot)

summary: calla and kirsch go to a halloween ball, and calla is nervous about it.

“For the last time, it’s not a costume party,” Calla said, getting out of the carriage. “There’s no need to dress like that, you know. You’re going to embarrass me in front of God and everyone at this god-damned ball.” 

“I look fabulous,” Kirsch said, delicately lifting his cloak as he followed his husband out into the snow. He was wearing a peacock themed mask, which would’ve been fine if he hadn’t themed the entire rest of his outfit around the bird. Calla took a deep breath in, and counted to ten, silently begging whatever God had informed his husband that it would be a good idea to dress like that would bless the rest of the party with that opinion. He tugged at his blue-green suit. The necktie had too much pattern. 

How the hell had Calla gotten roped into this?

It was a sort of crisp night, making the little magical lights outside the venue sparkle. Calla felt distinctly uncomfortable. He was nervous about noble venues, and the last time he’d been to one of these, it had been before Sherry was born, and he’d been too nervous with anticipation that someone would start talking or mention him, that he’d had no fun at all. 

Speaking of Sherry -

“Are you coming out, Sher?” Calla asked, and then his child stuck her head out of the carriage, grinning. Their copper-gold hair had been pulled into a low braid, threaded with peacock feathers and he had managed a very fancy suit-dress combination. 

“You look very nice,” he said, and kissed his child on the cheek. She giggled. “Very fancy.” 

“Thanks, Dad. Why are we dressed as peacocks again?” Sherry asked, and Kirsch lit up. 

“Well, I’m the squad captain,” Kirsch said. “We have to represent the Squad, of course!” 

“Dad was a Praying Mantis,” Sherry said. “Why don’t we dress like bugs?” 

“Hey, yeah,” Calla said. “Why didn't we dress as bugs? You wouldn't have had to dress up.” Kirsch gasped so loud that half the arrivals turned to look at them. 

Great start. Calla adjusted his bow tie. 

“I’m gonna go see if anyone cool’s in attendance,” Sherry said. “I’ll see you guys inside!” With that, they bustled off, lifting his skirts. Calla swallowed. 

“Are you nervous?” Kirsch whispered. 

“Now you gain emotional intelligence?” Calla whispered back. Kirsch sniffed and pulled his cape tighter around himself. “Well. None of my friends go here. It’s all a bunch of high society - and y’know, Sherry -”

“Sherry’s going to be fine,” Kirsch said, and offered an arm. Calla took it, clinging to his husband like a lifeline as they headed toward the venue. “And you’re with me, so you shouldn’t worry.” Kirsch tossed his hair. 

“God, right, I’m with you,” Calla bemoaned. “And you’re dressed like a bird. Nozel Silva is calling, he wants his aesthetic back.” 

“You are so cruel to me!” Kirsch gasped, and Calla laughed at the comical expression on his face. 

“You’ll survive my cruelty, y’know,” he said, and Kirsch huffed. 

“Nobles and royals are crossing the class divide more,” Kirsch said, and Calla bit his lip. “You’re not going to be out of place.” 

“I guess,” Calla said. “But y’know, I’m-” 

“You look like you fit in,” Kirsch said. “Because we match.” They did. Matching set. Plus, Calla loved teal and he didn't have to wear pink. “You’re going to do great. And if we make it through,” they made it to the top of the stairs, to the door. “We’ll go to one of the common realm’s parties next year.” 

“Deal,” Calla said, and leaned up for a kiss. Kirsch delivered, whipping a cocoon of blossoms around them - meant for privacy but just drawing more attention to the both of them. The gesture was nice. 

“Mr. and Mr. Vermillion?” the poor doorman said, and Kirsch dissolved the cocoon, holding out their invitations with his free hand. 

“Sorry about him,” Calla said. “It’s Kirsch-” Kirsch gasped again, and Calla squeezed his husband’s arm. 

“Our child’s inside,” he finished. 

“Welcome to the party,” the doorman said, and held open the door. Kirsch smiled at him, and Calla swallowed, took a deep breath, and smiled back. 

I’m going to have a good time.

[djsherriff-responses]

Could you explain why idolomantises’s designs fall flat like vivs designs? Just wondering because I love hearing anything character design related lmfao

Oh me too! I could talk about character designs all day!

I think while having very different styles, idolomantises and viviziepop’s designs both suffer from characters who don’t communicate what the character is or reflect the given world building (sometimes they’d just don’t fit at all?)

Vivziepop overcompensates this by having characters with ridiculous amounts of details that usually muddys whatever the concept is, not helped by her preference for thin body types and colour scheme of “red, red and MORE RED”

idolomantises meanwhile just, goes with the most obvious and generic direction without considering any visual symbolism that one can do with more finer details, or if there is detail it doesn’t actually add anything

Sera and the angels are a good starting point here in that Sera is the one with the most obvious Angel design with rings floating (I personally think the bird and cat look more Egyptian than anything else, though that’s not an actual design issue here)

Now I will say having Sera’s eyes being in her rings while her actual face is blank is clever but besides that? They’re all just wearing very thigh revealing dresses/robes with random golden bands , the ones on their thighs has got to be painful. Sera has the worst in that her skin and clothing are the same shade of white , so her skin just blends into her outfit

Which seems very conflicting with the fact that 1) Angels/Heaven’s views are so very anti sex that they place kissing and cuddling next to kink acts

And 2) Sera is so awkward and inexperienced with sex as a concept that Lili , her wife, laughs at her for being awkward about kissing her (I also do not like Lili but I’m sticking with design criticisms for now)

“Skin tight , flowy and thigh revealing robe with thigh bracelets” does not at all communicate that about Sera’s character or her environment. I don’t think you have to dress the angels as nuns to properly communicate their anti sex views, and a little fan service isn’t entirely wrong either . I think one could easily write out the conflicting thigh lore with an excuse that angels don’t see the naked body as sinful, and thus only a sinful pervert would think exposed thighs was sexual! But from what I’ve seen that isn’t the direction idolomantises is doing

But taking inspiration from both classical paintings and modern fashion, there was more that can be done with Sera and other angels besides “put a chalk white character who is very awkward with sex in a chalk white robe that high lights her thighs!”

Giving the angels revealing designs also makes the contrast between heaven and hell weaker as both angels and demons end up having similar design elements wow that sounds kinda familiar

Ignoring my own personal feelings about her, Lili’s a decent design in that you look at her and immediately go “ah yes, sexy demon lady”, she is straight to the point

maybe too straight to the point

See, Lili’s design isn’t an issue until you compare her to how idolomantises draws environments in hell and how he designs other demons

You know , for someone who’s well know to be critical of Vivziepop, you’d think he realise how much he is also guilty of over using red

”well , demons are from hell what did you expect?”

Idk, maybe some better values?

Oh, notice how the pink demon actually sticks out more than the main character?

I unironically prefer Mara over Lili and it’s weird she (or least her pink design/palette) wasn’t (used for) the main character considering her pinkness and Sera’s white and gold palette make the lesbian flag

Which is literally the logo of the comic these characters are from

[this-isnt-how-you-play-the-game]

I LOVE MOTHER 3 and i love the main three villain bads so i figured i might be using this blog mor. why not post a piece from a small while bacck. im probs doing better now but i dont think this sketch is SO Bad. i mainly did this one to practice eyes, a grueling task but it turned out that the interpreter's eyestyle is the one that began to stick to me. ill probably figure out how the hell to draw new fassad in the future... im stil learning...

some design(headcanon(?)) stuff id like to elab on for fassad:

fassad wears the vest n clothes hes known for when blending in with the villager,s, but when he is out doing more nasty work for master king p he uses a more army-fit uniform. i also like to think he has a cape similar to the colonels but capes and jetpacks dont go good together

big nose

i coulda probably made his horns bigger here. or maybe theyre better off a little smaller? big horns adds to the menace ngl

i didnt realize how many people DONT do the pigsnout hat button thing but apparently most?? i started doing it at some point and now it just feels right

chimera fassad no longer needs to appeal to the villagers because as far as they know he is missing, so being a chimera means he gets to go harder with the evil villain look. serpent-like robo eye included.

chimera fassad also has a more scruffy screwed up stache

hes a short fat fuck. that doesnt change much here

has a pretty feminine looking face. hes a magypsy. maybe he also still has magypsy habits? ionia says they need makeup to use psi so maybe fassasshole secretly wears some very hard to see lipstick

^^or maybe its more a thing about how the makeup makes them feel and the horns make him feel beautiful which is why he can use psi??? lore

thick bushy eyebrow(s) that look scary when hes mad just like the funny angry bird

and as a bonus, some headcans for ms interpreter:

has that 60s woman hair

overall mood: nerd

would do the anime glasses flash

the weird lamp thing on her head lights up and dims down depending on how tired she is and she is often a very tired robot

anyway, this art was actually a little while ago so im really just dropping it to dump a bunch of fassad/interpreter headcanons here. mother 3 is my favorite game. fassad is a super underrated villain for carrying the first five chapters and his dorky interpreter's design i always really found endearing. who knows??? maybe ill redraw?...

no one nose

[quicksilverdrabbles]

In the Dead of Night...

Azazel: *gasps, sitting upright in her bedroll*

Gore: *snoring quietly, still tucked into his*

Azazel: ...

Thalmor Justiciar: Over here, this way.

Azazel: ...? Elven.. Altmeri?

Thalmor Wizard: You're sure? This looks like an average vagrant camp.

Thalmor Justiciar: Positive. Our tip seemed very insistent that these were Talos worshippers.

Azazel: Talos worshippers..?

Thalmor Wizard: Summon the others, then. Leave no survivors.

Azazel: *gasps* Gore! *backs away from the tent opening, feeling around for where he is on the ground and shaking him frantically* Gore! Get up!

Gore: Hmn- Nn- Wha-

Azazel: Get up, you oaf! We need to get out of here!

Gore: Az-? Wha-What's going- OW! Mmf! *gets slapped in the face by Azazel's hand, a quiet 'sorry!', and then silenced by the same hand covering his mouth*

Azazel: Shh!! *points behind her towards the rising sounds of the Thalmor*

Thalmor Wizard: What was that?

...

Thalmor Justiciar: Probably a pair of lovers. It is that time of night.

Thalmor Wizard: Ill-fated lovers.

Justiciar/Wizard: *snickers*

Gore: *eyes widen, grabbing Azazel's wrist and pulling her hand away from him* We need to go.

Azazel: Where??

Gore: Across the border. We're close enough to slip through into Falkreath if we can avoid them here.

Thalmor Justiciar: Ugh, but I don't want to have to kill half-naked humans. Phynaster forbid they are fully undressed.

Thalmor Wizard: Leave that tent for last then, you prude.

Azazel: ...! Wait, I might have some invisibility potion-

Gore: You just had those the whole time??

Azazel: Lass like me kind of needs multiple options, just take the stupid potion!

Gore: Wait hang on- *grabs his sword, tearing a hole in the back of the tent and peeking out to make sure no one was around* We go out here. Come on. *takes the potion from Azazel and drinks it, disappearing*

Azazel: I have no idea what you just did, I hope you know. *drinks her potion and disappears*

Gore: Just- Come on! *grabs her hand and pulls her out of the tent. Cries rise up all around the camp, and smoke begins to rise from the tents closest to the edge*

Azazel: Oh Gods, I smell smoke-

Gore: Keep going. We gotta head north.

Azazel: Right.

Gore: *takes the lead, pulling her through the forest thicket towards Skyrim*

Azazel: *trips, stepping on a branch, the invisibility potion wearing off just as the loud crack echoes through the forest*

Thalmor: Hm? Did you hear something?

Gore: Shit. *grabs Azazel by the shoulders and redirects her in a certain direction* Keep running this way and you'll get across the border to Falkreath. Keep going, and don't stop until you feel the sun rise. I'll find you.

Azazel: Wait what are you doing-

Gore: I'm gonna buy you some time.

Azazel: That's ridiculous! Gore, you can't-

Gore: I can, and will. Hurry and go!

Azazel: Wait-

Gore: *shoves her forward, pivoting on his heel and drawing his sword at the three Thalmor that step out from the shadows* Go!

Azazel: *gasps, hearing the Thalmor's laughter*

Thalmor Wizard: Found the lovers.

Thalmor Justiciar: Gross. Just kill them and be done with it.

Azazel: Gods- just don't die! *turns and runs in the direction Gore pointed her towards*

Gore: Hah. What do you take me for?

~

Azazel: *hunched over with her hands on her knees, panting. Feels the warmth of the sun on her face* Sun's up... *swallows, wiping her forehead and standing straight* ... And I have no idea where I am. Lovely.

...

Azazel: I hope I'm at least in Skyrim. Don't think I went the wrong way, at least... *sighs, trying to listen for anything unusual* ... Why is it so quiet? Where are the birds?

Thalmor Justiciar: *from afar* Come on now, that mutt couldn't have gotten far!

Azazel: !? How the hell do they keep doing that??? *turns and runs, her feet catching against roots and branches against the ground* Son of a- I've got to find Gore.. *lifts her hands in front of her, conjuring a small blue orb between them, casting Detect Life in one hand and Clairvoyance in the other* If he's alive, lead me to him.

~

Gore: *laying on the ground with his leg caught in a bear trap* ... Y'know, I can't honestly say I'm surprised anymore.

snap!

Gore: ...! Who's there? *raises his head and glares into the woods* ... Whoever you are, better come out now, s'wit, or else I'll-

Azazel: S'wit? That's rich coming from the man I presume to be laying on the floor.

Gore: Azazel!

Azazel: What are you doing down there? You weren't sleeping, were you?

Gore: ... I'm stuck.

Azazel: Stuck?

Gore: Stuck.

Azazel: .. On what, exactly?

Gore: A bear trap.

Azazel: So.. you tripped over it?

Gore: No you idiot, it caught my leg!

Azazel: ...

Gore: ...

Azazel: *snorts* And you call me the idiot?? How did that even happen?

Gore: Would you just shut up and help me-

Azazel: Fine, fine. Bite down on something, this is gonna hurt. *kneels down and feels for his leg, her touch light as she skirts over the metal and takes a hold of it* Ready? One.. Two..

Gore: Three. *grunts, wincing when Azazel pries the trap open* Ow.

Azazel: Quit being such a baby. Here. *helps him stand up, leaning him against a fallen log* Take a rest for a sec while I heal this.

Thalmor Wizard: This way, hurry!

Azazel: ... *sighs* Or not. Guess we gotta do this the hard way. Stay here.

Gore: Are you crazy?! I can fight, just-

Azazel: Sit. *a streak of magic forces him to the ground* I'll handle it.

Thalmor Wizard: I found them!

Azazel: *turns towards the sound of the three Thalmor, dark green scales bloom across her face and neck as she activates Dragonskin and flames gather at her fingers* You'll really wish you hadn't in a moment.

[thelightningthatjumpsbetween]

Forty Eight

RE8 | Wintersberg | Romance, Slow Burn | Action, Sci-Fi

Sequel of Winters and the Beast, a Resident Evil: Village Story

The surprises didn’t stop coming after Ethan’s ‘conversation’ with the BSAA agent.  

Heisenberg steered him into a large bank branch, where amid all of the Romanian words, Ethan picked up on some of what was transpiring.  A land development fund allocation.  Not the bank’s funds.  The funds left by Miranda.  It was a vast amount.  He knew part of it was for the power restoration in the valley, but wasn’t the government handling most of that?  

The bank teller seemed to catch on that Ethan couldn’t keep up, and amid paperwork signing, asked Karl, in English, “So, what are the plans-a business, as it is a commercial account?  Will you need assistance finding contractors?” 

“We’ll draw plans up by spring, let you know,” Karl replied amiably.  His very American accent startled the banker.  The engineer stroked his beard and added nonchalantly, “Plans’re up to the wife.”  

Ethan turned sharply, wondering what in the hell Heisenberg was referring to, but the man thumbed at him cheekily.  “That’s the wife.” 

The banker laughed, confused, as Ethan’s face burned.  

—---------

Evie had her first ice cream with Ethan, Rose, and Donna in attendance.  As Ethan dug enthusiastically into his milkshake, Evie said in a deadpan, “The lady behind us in line was wondering why you weren’t holding Donna’s hand.  She thinks you two are our mom and dad,” and caused the blond to almost choke.  Donna turned red, an exceptionally rare feat, and Rose laughed.  So it appeared that his earlier ‘reading’ of Redfield was accurate…those infected, with enough power, could pick up on thoughts of others, even humans who weren’t infected.  

After the ritual of ice cream, Ethan said amid a racing heart, “Evie, if you want to call me your Dad…I’m okay with that.” 

“Really?  Even after…all the bad stuff…?”

“Sure.”  Why did that make him so nervous?  But then, he’d been nervous about taking care of Rose as well.  Ethan just supposed he took the title of ‘Dad’ seriously.  Which made sense, as his own had disappeared in his youth.  “You don’t have to, but you can.” 

“I think you’re a good dad.” Was she responding to his statement, or to what he was thinking?  

—---------

His next surprise was at the group meeting spot; Ethan and his small entourage approached the fountain at 6pm, the agreed time.  The blond’s gaze turned to tunnel vision when he saw a hunched figure, wrapped in multiple black shawls, tossing something onto the cobblestones for the birds.  But they were…crows.  

Time slowed; the grain leaving her hands cascaded in slow motion.  He heard the crackles as it landed, saw the black glinting eyes of the corvids as they pecked.  Ethan stared back at the figure, willing it to turn around.  He knew that when it did, it would be the hag…Miranda.  She straightened, her back still to him, and a familiar musical laugh soared toward him.  It was the same laugh he’d heard in January, in the Potter’s field-the mass unmarked grave of the village.   He moved to  stand in front of Donna.  Rose was in her stroller, Evie was holding his other hand.  Ethan pivoted so he was in front of Evie as well.  Donna pulled the stroller back and peered where it was that Ethan stared, but she seemed to miss the figure shrouded in black.  

Crows littered the entire area.  Most people walked by them without seeming bothered.  When he heard cawing, Ethan realized they were on the nearby statues and building ledges as well.  His gaze again went back to the hag.  She turned and he prepared for the pale eyes. 

And yet when she turned, it was a different woman.  She wasn’t wearing black, she had on a bright red and yellow shawl.  She smiled a toothless smile at Ethan before turning back and pouring more grain out.  To pigeons.  Pigeons were in the square.  He blinked rapidly.  

“Ethan, are you all right?”

“Did any of you see that?”  He half turned, his voice low.  He looked at Evie hopefully.  Even she shook her head in confusion.  “The pigeons were….crows.  That woman…she looked like Miranda.  Only for a second.” 

“I believe you,” Donna said simply, “But we didn’t see it.”  She gazed at the woman, and then back to the blond.  “But your eyes, Ethan…they were…”

“Dark,” the child finished.  

—------------------

It happened again after the train ride home.  

The regional train out of the city was old, creaky, rusty.   The combination of metal and motion lulled Heisenberg into a peaceful nap, and he sprawled out on a long window seat with Donna under his head, Moreau under his feet.  Ethan felt nervous, as if he were being watched the entire time.  He was trying to busy himself with anything other than what was on his mind; the strange encounters of the day.  He now had a phone, and only knew two phone numbers to put into his contact list. 

So he put them both in, hoping they were right, and sent the same text. 

Hey, it’s Ethan.  This is my number. 

He looked around at his makeshift family, wondering why he felt so uneasy…the morning train ride had been uneventful.  The buzz from his phone startled him.  

Hey Ethan! You finally got a phone! Welcome to the future.  Zoe. 

Copy that.  You sure your boyfriend wants you texting me?  Chris.  

He rolled his eyes at that and began a response.  Soon he was chatting with both, avoiding the topic of Eveline to Zoe, and feeling far more normal than he had in awhile.  

Eventually they reached their stop, a rural station that had no amenities and a dirt lot.  The pair of vehicles they’d driven out here were in the lot, waiting on them under a lone streetlight.  Ethan should have felt relief at seeing the old reliable vehicles, but he couldn’t shake the feeling.  As he stepped onto the platform and gazed down the row of doors opening, he saw a familiar face floating past all of the unaware passengers.  

It was Miranda.  She smiled at him, a nasty smile, and time seemed to slow around Ethan again as he watched her.  

Time’s almost up, he heard in his mind.  Was it her voice?  

“Papa,” Heisenberg said idly, putting a hand on the small of Ethan’s back.  “Let’s go.” 

“I-I saw-”

“I believe you,” Heisenberg said without a pause, “Don’t give it any attention.  Let’s get home.”  His soft voice did nothing to console the father, who scowled at Miranda one last time before leaving.  

—--------------------------

Ethan’s Journal

September 24

I have a phone!  It even gets service at the house, which has already annoyed Heisenberg.  

We had a great day in town.  I saw Chris, or rather, Chris dragged me into some diner to yell at me about bringing the lords back, I guess.  It ended better than it could have.  Not only did I get to finally tell him how I felt, but he understood, I think.  

We got a lot of what we need to start bringing this place back onto the grid.  Plus Evie got her first ice cream…on a cloudy day in September.  I guess it’s perfect.  

Heisenberg and Moreau are going to try their hand at this ritual/surgery to get the crystal fragment out of Donna’s body tomorrow.  I know they’re not saying it, but they’re nervous.  Well, Moreau is always nervous, but he’s the only one who ever saw it done and he knows what to do.  I don’t even want to know how many surgeries Karl has done but since it’s Donna, he’s scared.  

Eva is going to stay with them in case something goes wrong.  I don’t know how it works, but apparently, our bodies will calcify or crystallize as a defense mechanism.  Kind of like dying, temporarily (which happened to me after I lost my heart).  Or, they hope it’ll be temporary.  Eva has the best chance to be the mold ER doc. 

While they do the surgery, I’m going to take Alcina to meet Godric.  I am a little stressed about bringing the girls, but Eva says it’ll be fine.  And I guess both of them sneak off and see him sometimes.  I’d be mad about it but I understand why they do.  

Assuming all goes well with Donna’s fragment, that will only leave Moreau’s.  It feels like we’re finally gaining ground, but I can’t help being scared of whatever this void is I feel…it feels like something is coming, like a storm.  I felt it today before I saw the hag as well as when we got off the train.  I can also hear a voice sometimes, not the regular voices from the Mold (they don’t show up unless I talk to them, usually) but a voice that seems like my own.  It wanted me to out-power Chris today when he was pulling me.  

I’m going to sleep on the couch again tonight…I’m worried.  Alcina did say she would slit my throat if I ‘went feral’......is that her way of being nice to me? I can’t really tell.  

[darkhangels]

14. lullaby

enjoy the silence masterlist

morpheus x f!reader

warnings: smut, minors DNI

words: 4831

When you arrived in the dreaming that night you very foolishly thought that Morpheus would somehow have covered the hickies for you. He had done similar things before after all, if you went to bed wearing a little less than normal you would end up in the dreaming with the outfit you had worn that day or the pyjamas you would normally wear to bed. So surely he would’ve covered them, made them disappear to avoid embarrassment.

You had already dealt with the mocking from Lorna and Veronica early on in the night, as they both practically bombarded you with intrusive questions and making your face flush. You did not need it from Matthew and Mervyn as well. Lucienne would surely notice but keep to herself about it. It’s not like they would’ve known it was their Lord Morpheus who had in fact attacked your neck so deliciously but still the point stood.

So when you arrived in the dreaming only for Matthew to let out an extremely alarmed croak before letting out a strangled, “Jeez kid!” at the sight of you, you were more than embarrassed. You turned to one of the windows in the library, looking at your small reflection and yep they were still there. You had hung your head in shame and covered your inflamed face with your hands.

“Someone's had fun” Matthew croaked with a sly tone to his voice.

“I thought they wouldn’t have shown in the dreaming” You groaned and Matthew let out a huff.

“Oh they’re showing alright!” He cackled. “So, who’s the lucky guy or girl?” He asked in a mocking tone sidling up to you.

You scowled at him ignoring his question, making your way over to Lucienne. “Oh come on! Tell me!” Matthew croaked and you rolled your eyes, biting back a smile before rather nervously greeting Lucienne.

She studied you over the top of her glasses with her usual tight but warm smile before her gaze turned to your neck only for a second, her eyes widened before she cleared her throat and plastered a smile back on turning to your eyes with a look that screamed ‘I’m minding my business but what the fuck?’.

And then of course Merv walked in, immediately drawing attention to you. “Holy hell! What the fuck happened to you, kid?”

Matthew sighed. “Don’t bother, Merv, She won’t budge”

“I fell down the stairs” You muttered.

“Fell down the stairs?” Merv repeated with a scoff. “And what did the stairs have a pair of lips as well?”

You blushed and groaned again, wishing to explode right then and there.

“Merv,” Lucienne warned, studying the pumpkin over her glasses.

“What? I’m just saying what everyone was thinking!” Mervyn exclaimed.

Matthew fluttered his wings “And she still won’t tell me who did it!”

You turned to the bird with a glare, “And I won’t”

Matthew's head cocked to the side. “Besides I thought you liked the b-”

“Matthew!” You shouted through grit teeth, eyes widening at the raven beside you, your blush simply growing by the second.

Merv started lighting his cigar. “Whoever it is had a hell of a time”

“Yes, thank you” You deadpanned to the pumpkin

“Usually the boss gets rid of anything like that in the dreaming, so I don’t know why you still have them” Matthew croaked.

You scoffed, “Probably to embarrass me, that’s why”

Merv cackled. “Well someone tell him, it’s working”

You winced your eyes shut and squeaked something about going to find a book in a rather high pitched voice.

You turned on your heel and quickly strode into the forest of bookshelves, hiding away from everyone as you let embarrassment wash over you. You let out a sigh of relief as you fled from everyone's eyes, your gaze fluttering to the bookshelf beside you as you ran your hands over the fingertips of the spines of books that were so ancient you couldn’t even comprehend their age.

You reached out for one of the books, a bright sapphire, the words written in Latin, of course you didn’t understand it but you could simply feel the history radiating off of it, off of so many of these books. You had quickly become accustomed to the dreaming and the many wonders it brought alongside with it. But when you were alone, able to marvel at the most mundane things you realised just how fantastical this realm was.

The only way to describe it is that it truly was the realm of dreams and surrealness. Nightmares too, though you hadn’t ventured those parts yet and hoped you would never have to, you had quite your fill of nightmares, enough to last a lifetime.

The nightmares still managed to wove your way into your everyday life, still when you were about to fall asleep a small part of your mind wonders, fears, that you would wake up in a dingy dark cell surrounded by cult members watching a raven be brutally murdered.

Still the croaks of ravens makes a cold chill drip down your spine with dread, of course the irony wasn’t lost on you. You feared the sounds of Ravens and yet one of your closest friends was a literal talking Raven.

But you couldn’t help but wonder if it was just irony, just a coincidence, maybe it was a sign, an omen?

Now you on longer had the nightmares you had begun deeper research into what they had symbolised. Freud, witchcraft, you name it. You had researched it.

The typical contender was that dreaming of Ravens meant misfortune was on the way.

But that doesn’t matter does it?

The dreams had stopped after all now, the reasoning behind them was simply a rogue demon.

Nothing else.

Surely?

“What are you looking for?”

You jumped out of your skin causing the book to fall from your hands before Morpheus quickly caught it without so much of a struggle. “Sorry, you scared me”

“My apologies” He said, watching you curiously before his eyes darted to your neck, his gaze darkening as his lips twitched up in amusement.

You followed his gaze down to your neck and you huffed. “Yeah I have you to thank for this”

“It rather suits you” He muttered darkly and you swallowed harshly at his tone.

You scowled at him as your mouth twisted into a reluctant but unavoidable smile before his lips gently brushed against yours.

He pulled away and you tried to hide your grin. “So, what were you looking for?” He asked again, looking down at the book he caught in his hands.

Your gaze turned down to the book he held. “Nothing in particular, just admiring how old some of these books are”

You gently took the book from his hands. “Ancient words, forgotten by time” You muttered under your breath, fingertips dragging along the hardcover before returning it back to the bookshelf.

Morpheus peered at your admiration, his heart growing soft at the concentrated look on your face.

You turned back up to him with a warm smile. He grabbed your hand motioning for him to follow you, intertwining your fingers with his, a glowing expression on your face you followed closely behind him as he swept through the library out into the rest of the dreaming.

You felt the warm sun hit your face and graciously enjoyed it, it was always the perfect temperature here, no matter what. Unlike the waking world's cold and unforgiving winds.

You smiled at random dreamers and dreams who meandered around and Morpheus watched all too proudly.

You had met many of his creations, he was very proud of his realm and what was his. Though there were a few names that Lucienne or Matthew would mention that you would never hear Morpheus talk about, one was a creation called The Corinthian, apparently he was one of the best nightmares created. Created all too well and skyrocketing into madness and humanity.

You shuddered at the thought of the nightmares, your earlier thoughts coming to haunt you. “Morpheus?” You bit your lip turning slightly to him.

He hummed in acknowledgement.

“Do dreams have meanings?” You asked hesitantly.

His eyebrows furrowed. “You’re asking the King of Dreams if Dreams have meanings?”

You huffed slightly, a loose laugh falling from your lips. “Like if I dreamt of a snake, would that snake symbolise something in my life?”

Morpheus looked upon the dreaming, taking in his realm with his pale eyes. “Sometimes, sometimes not”

You sighed slightly. “What does that even mean?”

Morpheus thought slowly, considering his words carefully. “Dreams are a manifestation of the subconscious and unconscious, if there is something persistently on your mind then it will more often than not appear in your dreams” He turned to you. “Whether it manifests itself as exactly how it is seen or symbolised behind metaphors it is still the subject”

Your eyebrows furrowed trying to make sense of what he was saying, Morpheus took in your reaction before licking his lips trying to explain further. “If you were to dream of a snake, it could simply be a snake or it could be something subconsciously growing on your mind manifesting itself as the snake”

You nodded slowly. “So there’s no definitive answer?”

“No, though I can usually tell in others dreams whether something simply is, or whether there is more behind it”

You bit your lip. “Ok and the snake would signify different things to other people, not just one whole meaning for everyone, right?”

Morpheus turned to you now with a curious glint in your eyes. “Yes though they can often be similar, dreams are far too subjective to be generalised” He huffed ever so slightly. “Despite how determined humanity is on finding meanings to their dreams instead of simply letting them be”

You swallowed harshly, there was truly no definitive way of finding out what the nightmare meant without asking the demon, and you were not going to hell.

Just because it may not have meant anything to you currently doesn’t mean it couldn’t have been an omen for the future.

“What about omens, can dreams be omens?”

Morpheus stopped walking beside you and slowly turned to face you instead, regarding you with both curiosity and slight concern. “Why do you ask?”

You let out a breath of air, your gaze dropping to the stony path to the palace you were both standing on as you nervously fiddled with your fingers. “The nightmares” You weakly responded.

Morpheus' eyes softened in realisation.

“I know that they are gone,” You shook your head ever slightly. “But that doesn’t mean I can just forget about them, what if there was a reason?” You looked up at Morpheus again. “There had to be a reason, the same nightmare every night for almost forty days” You whispered.

“If not a meaning then a sign, an omen” You muttered.

Morpheus stepped closer. “The reason,” He spoke slowly and gently. “was a rogue demon who preyed on you, because you were vulnerable”

You nodded though unconvinced. “But can they?”

His forehead creased in confusion. “Can they what?”

“Be omens”

Morpheus sighed slowly regarding you before answering. “It is known that from time to time the fates may interfere in dreams, as they do with all of the endless’ realms”

You let out a shuddery breath. Lucienne had mentioned them before and of course you knew from your limited knowledge of greek mythology about the fates.

“But that is beyond rare and would not happen if your nightmares were being influenced by an outside force which they were” He explained, seeing the fear in your eyes.

You let out a shaky sigh of relief and smiled weakly at him. He stepped closer, “Why do you fear them only now? They are gone” He whispered, taking your hand in his.

You looked down at his pale hands, how much bigger they were than yours as his thumb slowly stroked a circle into your skin, looking up back to his face you gave him a sad smile. “I have more to lose now, I guess”

Morpheus knew he should’ve returned you back to the way you had dreamt before right then and there.

Severed the connection between the two of you in one devastating swoop.

And yet the King of Dreams was not yet ready to face the truth.

He was simply not strong enough to let you go.

He regarded you with a kind expression before leaning down and kissing you so softly you were almost unsure you had felt his lips against yours at all. A rush of butterflies fluttered through your stomach at the feeling and you smiled helplessly against his lips. His lips travelled down your jawline to your neck, before you pulled away. “Nope, not again, this is humiliating” You said pointing to the abundance of hickies on your neck.

A smirk grew on his face. “I’ll just have to mark you elsewhere then”

He went back to your neck, “Uh Morpheus, we are kind of in public” You nervously laughed.

You blinked and you were suddenly back in the palace, in one of the many corridors. You stumbled back at the strange feeling and looked around you before looking back at him. He gently pushed you against the wall, kissing you as you gripped onto his neck, pulling him into you, hungrily nipping at his lips tugging with your teeth making a low groan come from the Dream King. He threw his head back as you made your way to his neck before he gently closed a hand around your throat pushing you back against the wall slowly. “And what do you think you are doing?” He rasped.

You shrugged innocently. “Marking you”

He raised his eyebrows. “Marking me?” He repeated.

You looked up at him through your lashes in a sultry manner. “Well it hardly seems fair I have all these marks and you have none” You went back to his throat, “My king” You hissed against his skin.

Morpheus’ head rolled back as you worked your magic along his neck before he grabbed your chin, crashing his lips against yours messily. You groaned into the kiss trying to pull away, “Stop trying to distract me”, your eyes flitted back to his neck before Morpheus grip on your chin stopped you from doing so.

“I’m afraid I far prefer marking you” He said in an all too cool tone.

“You keep telling yourself that” You hummed before kissing him again, his tongue this time infiltrating your mouth making you fall into a million pieces as you leant against the wall, your knees becoming jelly as one of Morpheus’ hand gripped your waist, pinning you against the wall yet also keeping you up right.

“You were saying?” He darkly whispered in your ear.

You felt weak against him as his tongue roamed around your mouth and he pinned you against the wall, as he infiltrated every one of your senses. He removed himself from your lips moving to your cheek as his other hand left the grip on your waist and swiftly cupped around your core, his other hand reaching for the waistband to the shorts you had worn to bed, You jumped at the electric jolts sent through you, raising one hand to your mouth to muffle any kind of moans or shrieks that would leave your lips.

“Not here” You squeaked looking around anxiously at the empty corridor that any of his subjects could’ve walked down any second.

“Very well” He muttered against your ear.

Another blink and you were in a monochrome room. With a black chair and an accompanying black bed littered with silk sheets. His quarters. You soon realised.

You looked up at Morpheus beside you, your eyebrows furrowing. “I thought you said you don’t sleep-”

You answered your own question as realisation rippled through you staring into his eyes. Before you looked down blushing, “Oh”.

He gently took your chin, moving so he could kiss you again, his other hand reaching down past your stomach entering your shorts, his finger sweeping over your clit making you softly whimper into the kiss as he stroked gently against you. Your breathing quickened as he oh so slowly teased you before you bucked your hips behind you feeling his hardened member against you, he let out a groan before he removed his hands from you, sitting down on the edge of the bed. You took your shorts off before you threw your legs over him, straddling him. You were unsure how and when but he had taken his coat and shirt off leaving him with just his trousers on. Allowing you to admire his god-like body. Slowly he landed down onto the sheets, you following him down, leaving a trail of kisses on his neck.

“Come here” He muttered, underneath you

Your eyes flew over to him and your forehead creased before letting out a huff. “What do you mean, I’m right he-”

“No” Morpheus growled and he softly yet firmly grabbed you thighs pulling you down so that your entrance was aligned with his lips.

You let out a nervous chuckle. “Morpheus this i-”

“Relax” Morpheus spoke, his words vibrating between your thighs. “Let me pleasure you”

You let out a yelp, his hands gripped around your thighs pulling you down before he hungrily started lapping you up. You almost lost your balance as your hands threaded through his hair at the shocks rippling through you, his tongue slowly tasting every part of you. Your thighs started to shake under the pressure and you let out some whispery moans.

His tongue started to speed up and you grip on his hair tightened as you hips bucked against his mouth, all previous shyness nowhere to be seen. The soft ache in your stomach tightened and tightened, setting you aflame with every touch Morpheus pressed to you. High pitched, shuddering moans falling from your lips.

Morpheus was beginning to understand your body better than anyone ever had, better than maybe even yourself. He started to memorise every part of your body that was your weakness, every bit of skin that made you moan so prettily for him. It made teasing you, if he must, all that much easier.

He wished to keep you in his quarters forever, hearing every single illicit sound that he could possibly make you scream.

Your cheeks flushed and you threw your head back. “Morpheus!”

You arrived at your climax and slowly crawled off of him, your thighs shaking ever so slightly as you breathed heavily trying to get your head back on. Morpheus sat up and made his way over to you as he softly kissed you, feeling your aftershock tremors tremble through your lips.

You gazed at him from under your lashes. The dark desire rooted deep in his eyes yet so gentle. His lips, soft and plump. The way his face was so perfectly sculptured, how smooth his white silk skin was.

And butterflies rippled through you.

How lucky were you that it was him.

Him.

With the gorgeous starry eyes.

And you were in his bed.

“You are gorgeous” You rasped out.

You didn’t get to measure his reaction because his lips were already on yours practically the second the words even so much as left your mouth.

He slowly moved your thighs apart as he shrugged his trousers down before he slowly entered you. You doubted you would ever quite get used to just how big he was but you welcomed it. Your head rolled back onto the silky black pillows as he slowly thrust into you whilst leaving soft kisses on your mouth, jaw and neck. His hands intertwined with yours as you both rocked to the steady rhythm as Morpheus’ low grunts slowly turned into moans echoed around the room.

He started to speed up and more moans reverberated through the room from the both of you and you hoped that the palace walls were soundproof, though you couldn't bring yourself to care so much, not when you were literally in Lord Morpheus’ bed, underneath him.

His raven hair stuck to his sweaty forehead as his jaw tightened and flexed with every move as if he was restraining himself, he threw his head back showing off his neck as his lips shuddered open letting deep moans fall through the air. And just like this with him on top of you, colliding into you did you realise just how powerful he was. This was not just the King of Dreams and Nightmares, he was the dreams and nightmares.

More than a god.

The Prince of Stories.

The Oneiromancer.

The fucking Sandman.

And he was Endless.

And your moans became louder at the thoughts and you wrapped your legs around him, pulling him into you, making a dark hiss come from his teeth.

He was becoming close you realised as his deep moans became higher in octave with each thrust, you clenched him into you and he released himself as his forehead fell on yours making the two of you writhe in ecstasy as your orgasms rippled through the air.

A few seconds of heavy breathing later and he placed a kiss on your cheek. “You always take me so well”

You could have orgasmed again at the words as you clenched against him again, silently praying he hadn’t felt that but of course a small smirk grew on his face. “I will bear that in mind for the future, rogue dreamer”

You blushed and let out a huff before playfully swatting at his shoulder, he exited you and pulled his trousers up before laying beside you. You let your head rest against his arm and he stiffened only for a second before opening his arm up wider so you could rest against your chest.

His skin was warm and yet it always surprised you, you had thought surely considering his cold exterior his touch would be Icey, but he was always so warm. The kind of warmth that lulls you into a comforting sleep.

“You’re always warm” You muttered against him.

He hummed absentmindedly, the vibrations from his chest humming softly against you.

“Thought you would be cold like a vampire” You continued.

“A vampire?” He repeated with amusement.

It was your time to hum then, “Well you did mark up my neck pretty well” You laughed to yourself, “Don’t tell me you sparkle in the sun too”

You rolled your head back to look at his face as he stared at you like you had grown two heads before you chuckled again, “I’m afraid someone may have taken your appearance for inspiration”

Morpheus raised his eyebrows. “I believe many humans have”

You scoffed at that. “Yeah, you’re telling me I think your style practically started the Goth subculture”

His lips twitched at your words as he stared off into the distance, a comfortable silence ensuing.

You enjoyed the pure serenity of the moment, as you felt his chest moving up and down with every breath he took. The soft whispers of his breath were so peaceful that had you not already been asleep you would’ve fallen asleep into a soft slumber

Morpheus’ voice croaked seemingly out of nowhere. “If the nightmares ever start again, you come straight to me” He hoarsely whispered.

Your forehead creased in confusion as you looked back up at him. His face was etched deep in something. “I will” You nodded.

His eyes flew down to yours, gleaming like stars only for a second before returning to the Icey blue. “Swear it”

You were taken aback by his sincerity and you swallowed slightly as your lips parted taking in his face. “I swear it” You softly answered.

----------------------

A week and a half passed.

And life?

Life was the best it had ever been.

You’d spend your days in the waking world as happy as can be but counting down the minutes till you fell asleep and would be reunited with your life in the dreaming.

Morpheus would visit occasionally in the waking world but it was rare as he did not want to depart from his realm for too long, understandably so.

You would spent your time in the dreaming helping Lucienne with books, speaking to Matthew about whatever crossed the birds mind and ‘annoying’ the shit out of Mervyn though you knew the pumpkin secretly liked his time with you.

And the best part of it was when you were with Morpheus (which was most of the time). When you were not exploring the endless sights of the dreaming with him, he’d whisk you away to a remote corner of the palace and whisper sweet nothings into your ears.

He was past the point of seducing you.

He was romancing you.

In every way possible.

In soft and gentle touches, exchanged glances when you were in company with others, the way he held you when you were alone.

And you were completely and utterly infatuated to a point of no return.

Morpheus too, hell, ask Matthew, he hadn’t seen his boss in such a good mood before.

So much so he was starting to catch on, so was Lucienne, and so was the rest of his subjects. It wasn’t particularly hard to see.

When the two of you would stare at each other, both momentarily forgetting the rest of the world. Or when a soft rosy blush would creep on your cheeks by something he simply says or does. When they would see how their Lord looked at you when you weren’t noticing.

Oh yeah, they knew.

But especially Lucienne and Matthew.

If it wasn’t the sometimes strange noises they would hear it was definitely the way the Dreaming's weather had been. Lucienne knew it the second you had arrived in the dreaming the second time for seemingly no reason whatsoever.

She knew how much of a romantic fool her Lord was. They all did.

And Lucienne couldn't help but be happy for her king and you, her friend.

But as your friend she couldn’t help but worry.

She had seen it all.

Nada, Calliope, Thessaly. All of them.

And she couldn’t stand to see you be heartbroken.

Nor her King.

-----------------------

You were working besides Lorna, the coffee shop was always busier this time of year, more people wanting hot drinks after stalking the cold weather of course.

So when your phone repeatedly kept ringing because you would not pick up due to the mass line of people, you were more than annoyed. Finally the people dwindled down and you picked up the phone with an angry huff.

“Hello” You asked through gritted teeth, your annoyance evident.

“Well, well, well look who decided to pick up” A familiar voice rang through the phone and you felt your blood boil.

You hadn’t spoken to her since the night of the reception.

“What do you want, Mum?” You sighed, placing one hand on the counter tiredly leaning against it, Lorna sending you an apologetic and worried glance.

“I just thought I’d let you know that despite what happened, I’m willing to forgive you and invite you round for Christmas”

You let out a huff as you stared at the ground. “Forgive me?”

“Yes, well you know Christmas spirit and all that” A tight voice replied.

You shook your head. “No, I’m not the one in need of forgiving”

“I beg your pardon”

You took a deep breath, “You heard me, you treat me like I’m just some burdensome piece of shit on your life and I’ve had enough, I’m done”

“How dar-”

“If you want to apologise, I’d be happy to hear it, but if not don’t call this number again”

“Excuse me?” She practically squeaked through the phone.

“Merry fucking Christmas, Mum”

And you hung up, slowly turning to Lorna at her shocked face before she started slow clapping. “That was so cool”

You grinned. “I think I did a bit much at the end though”

Lorna shrugged. “She’s had it coming for a long time”

You nodded in agreement, before the two of you closed the shop down for the night. Before you both stepped out into the cold winter night, streets bustled with crowds of people getting their Christmas shopping. As festive lights hung from the building lighting up your way.

Lorna turned to you. “Y’know you seem really different recently”

Your lips parted in confusion. “How so?”

“You’re so much more confident and yourself, self-assured” She smiled.

You blushed at her words. “I hadn’t noticed”

Lorna nodded slowly. “Whoever this Murphy guy is I think he’s really good for you”

You started to beam at her before she pulled you into a hug. “See ya tomorrow!”

You waved her goodbye and skipped to the bus stop, ready to finally go to sleep.

To go to the dreaming.

To go to Morpheus.

[sepublic]

Through the Looking Glass Ruins!!!!!

         …

         SO! Onto other things first…

         WRATH IS BRAXAS’ FATHER!??!!? HOLY SHIT, Wrath is a canonical dad, I’d always expressed my… OH MY GOD WRATH IS DAD! And of BRAXAS, that sweetie… How is Braxas such a sweetie with a father like HIM, also-

         Wrath was in casual wear? Either he has a day off, or he got fired by Belos/Kikimora after drawing Luz a map to Eda in Young Blood, Old Souls! Either way this guy has a sudden new level of NUANCE that I am reeling from, and yes I checked, that really is Wrath according to the credits! Dang this puts everything in a WHOLE new light…!

         AMITY HAIR OHMIGOD IT LOOKS SO ADORABLE SHE’S SELF-ACTUALIZING I AM FUCKING SCREAMING HOLY SHIT OH MY GOD!!! OH MY GOD OH MY GOD, it’s PINK and not green… They acknowledged it, Emira did! And they CHANGED IT I AM LOSING MY FUCKING MIND OVER THIS-

         She looks so BEAUTIFUL and I love the kind of foreshadowing with the bookends of our first shot of Amity having her hair down, and now it’s changed! And she looks adorable and EMIRA AND EDRIC BEING GREAT SIBLINGS I LOVE IT SO MUCH! This… THIS is everything I wanted! I was resigned to not much of them but HELL YEAH they’re being good siblings and we get a look at their rooms, we see them doing MAKEOVERS together this is everything from my favorite fanon content and MORE,

         Also Edric has a date?! Emira says ‘their’ mom… Unless the Golden Guard has a mom, DARN! Not gonna lie, I half-expected a big twist at the end that Edric was dating the Golden Guard, who was doing some sort of reconnaissance as his unrecognized normal self and/or screwing around with the Blights even further, but in a GENUINE sense… But then who knows Kikimora could be posing as GG’s ‘mom’, this is a stretch anyhow-

         JUST HELL YEAH Blight Twins! Blight Twins being sweet and mischievous and supportive of each other, Blight SIBLINGS being siblings, Emira being an older sister and giving advice! And AMITY, Amity mentioning how much Luz has changed stuff, I love that they acknowledge it openly how her life has completely shifted, and now… NOW…!

         No necklace! Red leggings! PINK HAIR?! Is this why Amity in the intro hasn’t been updated yet… She was getting TWO updates, so the animators decided to only animate a change after this final update?!

         King and Gus are also friends it seems, and they even recorded some fun together! I’m surprised at how much Bria and the others mock Gus’ illusion skills… Obviously Belos is kinda terrible but like; I don’t think he’d set aside an entire subset of magic into Illusions without reason! Also that nightmare trip… I LOVE IT, I love Gus applying the creativity of illusions in their ability to completely warp and distort someone’s sense of reality! And I called that dragon-thing being an illusion!

         A graveyard… I wonder if the Gallderstones (is that how it’s spelled) have any relevance or if they’re just neat? I hope Mattholomule and Gus help hide the Looking Glass Graveyard… Damn, that’s another Death reference with Gus, huh! Is it culminating in his respect for the dead, or will it continue further with Gus being a necromancer, or an Oracle who can commune with the deceased, and he has their respect as someone who treats them properly?!

         Also not to get dark but… What if all those Illusionists are dead because of Belos? I’m JUST SAYING…! And not gonna lie, every time someone insulted Illusions, I kept imagining the Illusion Head just suddenly waking up and feeling like there’s a disturbance in the force, as well as a weird compulsion to beat up some Glandus kids. It’d be even funnier if he had beef with the Construction, Plant, and Abomination Heads as well!

         Speaking of which, more confirmation on Construction Magic being related to earth! Glad to see Bria give us a look into that, which furthers my idea of Belos using construction magic… Also dang, Bria and the Glandus Kids really are the parallels/foils to the Detention kids! You’ve got the short ‘nice’ girl, the tall lanky kid, the furry… But the Glandus Kids start off looking nice and cool, but turn out to be rather nasty!

         Meanwhile the Detention Kids seem like bad news and delinquents, but no! They’re just demonized and actually very kind and chill! The Detention Kids are looked down upon, the Glandus Kids are appraised… The Detention Kids are dual-track, the Glandus Kids are singular; Glandus Kids from, well, GLANDUS, Detention Kids from Hexside… One’s ‘mischief’ is actually very neat and cool, the other’s is literal grave robbing.

         I guess that’s how the bleeding statues got past the censors- It’s technically just an illusion! Also more insight into how Glandus works with its Survival of the Fittest mentality, I wonder if we’ll get confirmation on which coven heads came from there, how that might influence them as adults…

         What is Glandus like, is it more whole-heartedly accepting of Belos’ rule, hence its harsh ideals? Was it made after Hexside? Does Bump hate it for being so cruel like that, or is it just school bias? And dang poor Mattholomule, I always had a feeling he sort of felt and knew that he wasn’t much, so he accepted and compensated by deliberately doing whatever he can for power…

         They confirmed he’s from Glandus, and I appreciate this new look at him! This new leaf turned… Hot take but he’s honestly not as bad as Boscha, his stint with Gus was a one-time thing that Gus was able to live with! And that seems pretty good to set them up as friends! Speaking of Boscha, Willow was injured by pixies? And the last time we heard of pixies, they belonged to Boscha and caused the school to get shut down… Did BOSCHA DO THIS I SWEAR SHE IS DEAD TO ME-

         (Also she’s mentioned in the credits for this episode but I don’t remember hearing her? I might’ve gotten distracted with so much other things.)

         Gus! I like the insight into his relationship with Illusions, and I appreciate how he’s considering other forms of magic… But this hesitation might just serve to reaffirm his believe in Illusions, which is okay! It’s all about choice… And yeah, it seems Gus also has a case of impostor syndrome like King, no wonder they get along so well! I love the glimpses into Gus’ house and the confirmation that he has a library card, no Perry though alas…!

         I appreciate how Gus feels overlooked, like he has no real substance, which is how his Illusions reflect a desire to draw attention, but also the idea that there’s nothing real beneath them… Again, very much like King! And Gus, he’s not a powerhouse like the rest, he’s SKILLED and smart, but strength isn’t his forte, it’s not brute force he operates on, but cleverness! Trickery, I like it…! It’s a nice callback to his last A-plot episode, SVSF, where instead of fighting Mattholomule physically, Gus’ solution is to think outside the box and pull the alarm!

         You go kid, not relying on brute strength but showing that some clever tricks and thinking are just as valid! Kinda wonder if this episode is lowkey a discussion on masculinity for young boys, especially with Gus growing older with puberty, though the latter is mostly because his actual VA grew… But maybe the writers rolled with that and incorporated it, or it’s just a very neat coincidence! Also, it is me or did Mattholomule’s voice change? And the gag that Gavin’s dad looks identical to him, even moreso because he’s NOT supposed to have a moustache… That’s great!

         Malphas! Love this reference to a classic demon, I wasn’t sure if Malphas was the librarian with glasses whom I’ve always headcanoned as a father figure to Amity… But maybe it’s actually this bird dude! He seems adept in Bard magic, and I love the reveal of his true crow appearance… Guess those theorists were right that the one-eyed figure is from the Forbidden Stacks! Also Malphas NOT COOL with Amity, but I’m glad Luz changed his mind, and I wonder how that adventure looked…

         Which- DAMN, the RSD with Luz! She looks so UTTERLY BROKEN when Amity mentions doing stupid things, and she didn’t mean it like that, but Luz just looks so completely shattered and you can tell she wants to cry but instead she bottles it up and tries to take it in stride, and that plays into her trying to overcompensate for her mistakes AGAIN… SOMEONE GET IT TO HER HEAD that she doesn’t need to! I’m scared for Luz, and I was SO scared this episode would end on a bad note…

         BUT DOAHLDdFAEONDKFHN LUMITY KISS LUMITY KISS! ONE-SIDED BUT THEY FINALLY FUCKING KNOW AND AMITY IS LIKE WHAAAAT AND I WAS WAITING FOR IT AND I COULD FEEL IT HAPPEN AND GAY KISS! GAY KISS ON-SCREEN!!! And the way Luz just FLOPS to the ground on her knees AAHJJFFKHGGK and no Alador nor Odalia to ruin this, UTTERLY PERFECT and the twins WATCHING OOOHHHHGGGG YYYEEAAAAHHH-

         This is EVERYTHING I ever wanted!

         What an AMAZING episode with wonderful characer beats and reveals! Again, Amity’s growth as a character, that brief insight into how Luz as a person is very chaotic and sometimes frustrating for Amity and forces her to reevaluate, but ultimately it’s good and Luz DOES try her best, and Amity clearly wanted to make things up for Luz and apologize, they’re BOTH doing things, just the little moments!

         Also, Alex Lawther voices Philip Wittebane! He has long hair and a vaguely british accent, he’s… He’s Belos isn’t he? And they got a new VA because having him voiced by Matthew Rhys would be really spoiler-y right? He’s got the long hair and he’s a nerd… And with how he talks of finding a way back home, maybe Belos really DOES just want to return home, after all? He talks of making a way back home…

         And we see a glimpse of the Portal, so it might’ve brought him there? Or did Philip succeed in making it, and that was his blueprint designs? Did he arrive by Titan’s Blood? What happened to the portal if it brought him there, or if he made it? Why the scar, why near Eda’s house, partially buried?

         Was it lost before he could finish his work, and Philip got side-tracked into something else… Perhaps going on a crusade, on behalf of a curse/demon that possessed him? A demon that killed King’s father…? Was the portal broken and he had to discard it, but then it naturally healed- Or did it just need to recharge, maybe Philip DID make it back home, WHAT IS THE ANSWER?! Is there some sort of doppelganger for Philip, is BELOS his doppelganger?! What is THIS WHAT-

         WHAT AN EPISODE!

[owl-with-a-pen]

brainy or nia try on karas glasses one day and kara realizes that they were brenda/brandon?

- Oh my god, yes! Thank you for the prompt. x

“No, no,” Alex said decisively. “It’s been years and I still don’t get it. How the hell do glasses make it impossible for people to recognise you? I’d know you from anywhere.”

Nia grinned from across the table, lifting her drink to her lips as Alex pinched Kara’s cheek, only to be batted away by her little sister a second later.

“Okay,” Kara said with a snort. “Your next round is gonna be water shots.” She turned her head from the table, making a show of searching the bar. “Where’s Al?”

“Oh, you know he heads out back the second this party rolls in,” Kelly said with an impish smile, raising her own glass. She took Alex’s hand before she could pester Kara any further, winding their fingers firmly together. “Although, I have to agree with the water.”

“Hydration would appear useful at this stage,” Brainy added with a sage nod. “She may also benefit from lining her stomach with something a little more substantial.”

Nia grinned, leaning back against Brainy’s chest. “Is that your not-so-subtle hint that you want more onion rings?”

She’d perched herself on the edge of Brainy’s stool some time into the evening; her smile widened when she felt his hands link around her front in response. “Sometimes, multiple issues can call for a single solution,” Brainy pointed out, tucking his face into her hair. “What is the saying? Two birds, one stone?” Nia's face warmed when Brainy’s lips traced idly along the side of her jaw.

Kara grinned. “Well, hey, I’m not gonna say no to more onion rings.”

It was fair to say that they’d all had a few drinks between them by now, although Kelly and Alex were strictly drinking from the human menu. Things always got a little whacky with alien grade alcohol, and despite her half-Naltorian genetics, Nia had barely been able to stomach a single sip of Brainy’s drink of choice. It suited his tolerance level far better, and made for a slower automatic response for his body to factor out the alcohol and sober him up. If his sudden confidence with intimacy in a public environment was anything to go by, Nia figured it was definitely working.

Nia knew Kara was drinking something similar to Brainy, although her Kryptonian biology made her far more resilient against its contents. She wasn’t even slurring.

Meanwhile, Nia was feeling all kinds of warm inside. Although, Brainy’s hold on her was probably a major factor in that.

It had felt like forever since they’d last gone out like this, and from the recent stress they’d all been under, it wasn’t exactly surprising that they’d found their way to Al’s bar. Plus, after the number of times they’d saved this place from one catastrophe or another, they got some incredibly generous discounts even on some of the rarer beverages. It was just unfortunate that Alex’s human tolerance really wasn’t matching up. And, considering Kelly was still on her first drink, she was currently the only person everyone was sorely worried about getting home safely that night.

With that in mind, Nia was just about to suggest heading up to the bar to go order, when Alex made her move, whipping her hand out quick enough to snatch Kara’s glasses straight from her face, balancing them across her nose.

She turned to Kelly immediately, staring at her levelly. “Well?” she asked expectantly. "How do I look?”

“It’s like looking at a total stranger,” Kelly deadpanned. She smirked, leaning in closer. “Although, they do make you kinda mysterious.”

Alex’s smile broadened. “Oh really?”

“My turn!” Nia chirped, plucking the glasses from Alex’s face. She rested her elbows on the table, propping her chin up with her hands the moment she had the glasses on. She narrowed her eyes, testing out her new perspective. As anticlimactic as it was, nothing really changed. It was just like staring through two pieces of clear glass. Nia pouted. She supposed it wasn't unexpected - that was exactly what she was doing, after all.

“It’s weird being able to see clearly while wearing someone’s else’s glasses,” Nia mused, playing around with the glasses’ temples, wiggling them up and down in front of her face. “Has anyone who didn’t know your secret ever done this before?” She jerked her head up, snapping her fingers. “Ooh, I know, I bet you just tell them you both need the same prescriptions. Am I right, or am I right?”

Kara didn’t answer.

“...Kara?”

When Nia turned, she realised that Kara was staring directly at her, a half-stunned daze in her eyes.

“What, did the alcohol finally kick in?” Nia prodded good-naturedly, only for Kara to reach out suddenly, taking the glasses away from her. “Hey! I was using those!”

Kara remained silent. Instead, with unnerving intensity, she came forward, slipping the glasses onto Brainy’s face. Brainy jerked from the unexpected contact, lifting them away from his nose as though they'd burned. He blinked quickly in affront, eyeing Kara suspiciously. “What was that for?” he asked.

“It was you two,” Kara said mildly; her voice sounded far too calm for comfort, like she was on the verge of a full-blown freak out. “All those years ago, in Midvale. It was you.”

Nia spluttered at the exact same moment as Brainy. She snapped her head towards him desperately. “What?” she asked, registering the panic in Brainy’s eyes that she knew was reflected identically in her own. “No—what—no?” She dug her hand into her boyfriend’s shoulder, squeezing tight. “Do you know what she’s talking about?”

“I have no idea what you are- what she’s talking about-” Brainy snorted defensively. “Do-do you?”

Nia nudged him nervously, eyes wide. “I just said I didn’t, genius.”

“...Right,” Brainy said quickly, clearing his throat. He raised his voice, turning back to Kara. “Two admissions though! Thus further proving that we have no idea what you are talking—”

But, Kara was still staring, a cold glare of certainty in her eyes. “I’d know that scrambling for an excuse anywhere,” she said, taking Brainy’s hands and guiding the glasses back into place over the bridge of his nose. She met no resistance this time, Brainy was far too busy gaping at her. “Brendan.” She turned to Nia accusingly. “Brenda.” Her lips split into a pained smile. “Rao- I thought you two were hiding something, but I was willing to accept it, because... I thought you were lost.”

“In our defence, we sorta were,” Nia admitted sheepishly. “The crash wasn’t part of the plan.”

It was Brainy’s turn to nudge her. “Nia.”

“Give it up, Brainy.” Nia cringed. “We’re caught.”

Kara ran her hands through her hair, shaking her head in bewilderment. “What were you guys even doing there? When did this even happen for you?”

“When you were in the Phantom Zone,” Nia said slowly, ducking her head.

“We needed your DNA,” Alex said softly. It sounded as though the recent commotion had done a good job at sobering her up. “To track you down.”

“It was thanks to these two that we were able to save you at all,” Kelly added.

Something crossed Kara’s expression then, but it was so quick that Nia barely caught it. All she knew was that in that moment, Kara looked entirely vulnerable. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked weakly.

Brainy swallowed hastily. “Had you known our true identities in 2009, it would have caused ramifications in the timeline that could have irrevocably changed the future.”

“I don’t mean then,” Kara said sharply, attention snapping to Brainy. Her expression fell. “Why not when I came back?”

“It didn’t seem… necessary,” Brainy said uncomfortably. Nia felt his grip tighten back around her and ran her hand across his arm, squeezing gently.

Kara scoffed, folding her arms. “Not necessary? You guys were in my past—you saved my life, and you didn’t think to tell me?”

“So much happened,” Nia said carefully. “Kara, we didn’t want to stress you out any more than you already had been.”

“Come here,” Kara said suddenly.

Nia blinked her surprise, catching Brainy’s eyes quickly for confirmation. Hesitantly, Brainy nodded, unlocking his arms from around Nia’s waist. Nia slipped from the stool, stepping towards her alongside Brainy.

They stared at her unsurely for all of two seconds before Kara came forward, swooping them both into the most intense super hug Nia thought either of them had ever experienced.

Nia gasped for breath, wrapping her free arm automatically around Kara’s back. The brush of Brainy’s fingers confirmed to her that he had done just the same.

“I never thought I’d get a chance to say this,” Kara murmured into the space between them. “But, thank you. Both of you, for everything that you did.”

“For... saving your life?” Brainy asked, voice muffled with confusion. “You’re... very welcome?”

Kara laughed, pressing her face into his hair. “Not that. Okay, well, of course that. But,” She sighed, drawing away again, her hands still locked tightly against each of their arms, “you both came to me at a time where I was questioning so much. My future, my identity, my place on Earth. I was hurting, in more ways I ever let on. And without you two—I don’t know what I might have done differently.”

Nia smirked. “Wait…” She turned her head towards Brainy. “Does that mean we were always meant to travel back to 2009?”

“Pre-destined time travel.” Brainy pondered on that thought for a long moment, his lips twitching into a smile of his own. He shrugged. “I suppose stranger things have happened.”

“You did crash, though,” Alex pointed out from across the table.

Brainy shot her a glare.

“Destiny,” Kelly cut in, sighing dreamily. “I like that, though.”

Nia knocked Brainy’s arm playfully. “Just like how you coming to this time gave you the chance to live freely. With us.” Nia squeezed her boyfriend's hand secretively before she turned back to Kara, smile softening. “Maybe we gave that same chance to you, too.”

“Thank you,” Kara said again. She blinked, wiping quickly at her face where tears were near approaching. “I- I don’t even think just saying that cuts it.”

Nia's smile widened mischievously. “Hey, does that mean the next round isn’t on us?”

Brainy raised a finger in consideration. “I believe tap water is on the house, anyway.”

“Hey, no water,” Alex shot back. “And you guys are not getting out of shots that easily.”

They all laughed at that. And, just like that, Nia felt as though an invisible tension that had been tethering them together had finally loosened.

She smiled as she re-joined her family back at the table, hand-in-hand with Brainy.

For the first time in a long time, it really felt like everything was going to be okay.

[spidernerdsblog]

Match made in Hell : Chapter Three

A/N : Chapter three is here. Survival of the fittest this is how life evolved on earth. And to survive you have to learn to adapt even if you have to make truce with people you hate. Hope you like this chapter. Let me know what you think.

A Happy New year to all of you lovely peeps! 💖💖

Pairing : Mob! Tom Holland x Reader

Summary : you always wanted a simple life but to be born as the daughter of a dangerous mobster turned out to be a curse for you. Everything changes when your father gets your lover killed and forcefully marries you off to another mobster as a part of a deal. You hate your father and your husband the only thing you seek is now revenge. Will you ever be able to fall in love again or this burning hatred inside you will consume you?

Warnings : 18+,mature content, a little PMS drama, language, flashbacks in italics, slight nudity, suggestive themes.

Mini Playlist : Bad Things by Meiko

SERIES MASTERLIST

Complying to the note you take a quick scan of the room ensuring that you’re not being followed by anyone before making your way to the restrooms but instead of going inside you sidetracked to your left and stride your way to the staff exit door across the hall and sneaked outside continuing to walk down the dark alley. You stop when you see a large figure standing in the dark a few feet away from you.

"Y/N" the man speaks with a deep voice.

"Who are you?" You demand. The man walks out of the shadow and your face lit up as you saw his face illuminated by the street light. 

"William? Oh my god!" You rush to embrace him. William Marshal, your father's most trusted wing man and your mentor. All the knowledge you have raptured be it hand to hand to combat or gun fight he taught you all. 

"How are you my little tigress?" 

"Surviving" You say with a small smile. "But what are you doing here?" You were so surprised as well as happy to see him.

"Your father sent me here."

Your brows draw into a frown ''Daddy sent you?...But why?"

"You are alone and boss thinks it's a little dangerous to leave you in the enemy territory on your own" 

You scoff. "Huh, since when did he start worrying about my safety?" 

"He wants me to help you with your task, so how much progress have you made?" He asks.

"Actually William there has been some changes in the plan” You say. “I’m no more playing daddy’s little killing puppet" 

William gives you shocked look. "What, are you planning to backstab your father?" 

''Not literally stab him though I wish I could heh. But I'm gonna make him pay for his crimes by turning him in and then let the law decide his punishment."

"You want to go on a legal battle with the king of illegal trades?” He chuckles lightly at your childish idea. “You're bluffing right?"

"I'm not bluffing Will. I just want to deliver justice to all the people who have suffered for him without anymore bloodshed. And I’m not ruthless like him and at the end of the day he's still my daddy so even if I want I will never be able to kill him" You sigh with remorse. 

"It's a suicide mission Y/N, you can't win against him, not alone"

"Well Rome wasn't built in one day, Will. Plus I have you."

His face went stoic. "I can't betray your father Y/N." 

"Will, how could you forget that this man killed your whole family? He didn't even spare your five year old daughter. Don't you want revenge?" You tried your best to persuade him. 

"That man died when he accepted his allegiance."

"Then here's your another chance to avenge your family. Are you going to help me or not?" You ask him firmly.

"You know I have always seen you no less than my daughter" He reaches out a hand cupping the side of your face "so what does my daughter want me to do?" 

The corner of lips turn up into a smile. "Nothing much for now I just want you to pose as a double agent, provide me all the information and report back to daddy whatever I exactly say to you" You explained. 

William nods in agreement to your plan. "So have the Holland's agreed to this?"

"Holland's?" You frown. "Why on earth would I involve them? They are no less evil."

"You are plotting against your dad the mafia kingpin and you need allies Y/N."

"I don't need any allies…" You pause mid sentence as it finally hits you what Will was actually trying to imply. You narrowed your eyes with a sly smirk "Unless I rat them out against each other and they end up destroying each other in the process without anyone suspecting it was me behind all this. Like this I can hit two birds with one stone"

"Well now you're getting it." William says proudly. 

"By the way boss told me to give you this." He holds out a revolver, you stiffen at it’s sight.

"That's my gun" You swallow hard.

"Yes indeed it is." 

"I can't take it Will and you know why" You say anxiously.

"I know that the past haunts you Y/N but that phase is over. You have to let go" He takes your hand and places the gun. "Keep it, you'll need it" Your palms were sweaty as you gripped on to the gun and looked at it intently. 

"I think you should go back now before your husband gets suspicious and remember.." 

You cut him off before he could finish. 

"To be nice and call in a truce. Trust me I got this." You winked with a sly grin and rushed back to the hall through the backdoor but you are met with an obstacle. Tom was standing right in front of the restrooms, you quickly retreated behind the wall.

"Shit! Why are men so clingy?!" You groan with slight irritation when your phone lights up

T : Hey you okay? You're in for too long. 

T : Y/N???!! 

You roll your eyes as you text him back. 

Y : No I'm not okay!!! 

Concern clouded his features whilst he texted you back.

T : Hey what's wrong? 

T : Darling, you alright? 

You couldn't think of any valid reason to get past him so you had to swallow your pride and texted back with the most safest and believable excuse for a woman. 

Y : I'm PMSing!!!  T : ….OK. 

You peered to see his reaction and you swear you would have burst out laughing if you weren’t in such a sophisticated place, the look on his face clearly showed how weirded out he was. 

Tom on the other hand was clueless about what to reply next, since a young age he has been dealing with the most dangerous people from the underworld but never in his life he had to deal with someone pmsing specifically he never had to deal with you. Though he had a little knowledge about these things thanks to sex ed at high school. You saw him take a deep breath before typing. 

T: You need something? 

Y: Yeah, will a tampon be too much to ask? 

Y: It's kind of urgent. 

T: Right on it. Just stay there. It will be fine, love. 

T: Do you need a change of dress? 

To be honest you were quite taken aback seeing this concerned and understanding side of his. 

Y: No, I'm fine. And please don't come barging in the ladies room. 

T: Yeah I know that. 

As soon as Tom moves away you quickly slip inside the restroom and heaved a sigh of relief. After a few minutes a middle aged woman walks in the restroom.

"You must be Y/N?" She asks with a smile.

"Yeah." You nod.

"Here you go, love." She hands you a tampon. You take it and go inside a stall. You wait for a few minutes before throwing the tampon in the dustbin and emerging out of the stall with a smile.

"Thank you so much." You say smoothening the slight creases on your dress.

"Oh don't be but I must say your husband really loves you. You should have looked at his face how freaked out he was."

"I really doubt the love part.'' You snicker, turning on the faucet in the basin to wash your hands.

"Well darling, here’s an advice from a lady to a lady keep your man happy and satisfied and then not only will he be showering you with all his love as well as—"  She coils her thick glimmering diamond necklace around her slim finger "might get these too."

"Well thank you for your advice but not a fan of leashes you see." You quip drying your hands with the paper towels.

"Trust me sweetie one day you will just want to wear these leashes only for your man." She steps closer putting a hand on your shoulder.

"Will see." You give a tight lipped smile.

After sometime you step out and find Tom patiently waiting for you.

"All good?" He asks, you nod in affirmation.

"It was lovely talking to you sweetheart. See you again." The woman chirps, you smiled waving at her.

Bad Things starts playing……. I know what I want And I'll get what I need I'll come over and I'll show you how Don't you wish that you can have me now?

"Shall we have this dance?" Tom held out his hand. You take it with a smile as he leads you to the center of the room. Your hands go to his shoulders while his hands rest on your hips. You slowly begin to sway your bodies to the music going back and forth, your eyes looking around to the other couples dancing. 

You say that you want all of my love But let's be honest we don't need all that I like it better with no strings attached

"You're welcome." Tom says, drawing your attention back to him.

"Uhh..." You look at him in confusion.

"I guess the words that you are looking for are thank you."

"To be fair it was kind of your duty to help your wife from an embarrassing situation." You quip.

"Oh now I'm your husband, huh?" He raises his eyebrows amused.

Good girls do bad things sometimes But we get by with it Good girls do bad things sometimes But we get by with it

"Well you have been rubbing the fact on my face since day one so—" You half shrug. 

"So what was Mrs. Sinclaire saying?" He asks looking around the room.

"Nothing of my interest just how I should get one of those shining collars around my neck." You roll your eyes dramatically.

"Those are gifts from their husbands who love them dearly, love" He corrects you, a smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

How much more can you take if I give you a taste I've been waiting for you all night long I come around and then I'm gone

"But for me those are glittering leashes" You retort.

"Darling, how much ever you pretend but under this tough shell you're just a hopeless romantic, you crave love and I can give you all of it only if you allow me." Tom laces his hand with yours another hand stays at the small of your back, waltzing to the music. 

You'll get yours, I'll get mine Then we run out of time You're the only one that I desire 'Cause I love to play with fire

"Maybe I'm that's why I still dream of a beautiful life away from all this from you" you say looking deep into his brown orbs.

He leans down to your ear and whispers. "I can assure you one thing princess the farther you want to go away from me the more I will pull you back towards me"

A shiver runs down your spine as his smile turns into a wide grin.

Good girls do bad things sometimes But we get by with it Good girls do bad things sometimes But we get by with it

His hand moved from your back to your lower waist and he dipped you low, taking you by surprise. You bent on your back as he pulled you back up with a force, throwing you against his body sending your body right into his broad frame.

Ooh (oh-oh-oh-oh-oh) Ooh (oh-oh-oh-oh-oh) When I'm down I let you know (ooh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh) When I'm down I let you go (ooh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)

You stayed like that for a while, inhaling deeply but the only thing you could smell was him, his expensive cologne intoxicating your senses and then he pushed you back again, spinning you around twice and settling back for the previous slow pace. 

Good girls do bad things sometimes But we get by with it Good girls do bad things sometimes But we get by with it (oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)

The night ends and you are now back at home sitting on your bed busy with your night routine rubbing on some body lotion on your hands as Tom walks in.

"What are you doing in my room?" You frown.

"Technically this is my room" He reminds you rummaging through his closet.

"Not anymore." You state haughtily. He plainly ignores you and goes inside the bathroom. 

After a while he comes out with a towel wrapped lowly around his waist, his wet curls sticking to his forehead. You couldn’t help but admire his chiseled upper body, muscles rippling and glistening in the soft golden light of the room.

"You’re staring" He sing-songs, smirking cockily.

"No-no, I'm not'' You fumble. 

"It's ok, darling I'm all yours to look at" You roll your eyes meanwhile he takes off his towel and throws it in the hamper before getting on the empty side of the bed just in his black calvin klein boxers.

"Whoa, you are gonna just wear that?" You ask in surprise. 

"Why you gotta problem?" He smirks while getting inside the covers. 

"No seriously, you’re either fully covered or almost naked. Nothing in between." You remark giving him an annoyed look.

"Why does it turn you on babygirl?" He says with a sultry voice. 

"Shut up and stop with these weirdass names, will ya" You grimace as he chuckles.

"And what about you? You are going to sleep in that?" He points out looking at your sleep shorts and a loose shirt. 

"Well you may think of yourself as a calvin klein's model but I ain't a Victoria’s secret angel. So yes I’m gonna sleep in these" 

"But your Instagram says something else" He quips, making you smile mischievously.

"Aww did someone get all riled up at work?” You click your tongue pouting “so sad." 

Tom all of a sudden grabs your arm pulling you down to him as you jolt down surprised.

"And for that you deserve a nice spanking" His voice low, a cocky grin plastered on his face.

"If you touch me I'll chop off your hands." You threaten with a cold stare and pull out your arm from his grip. You lay down turning to your side and snatched away the covers from him.

"Oi! blanket hogger!" He protests, pulling the blanket back.

"Get out of here!" You kicked his leg playfully snatching the cover again.

"Y/N I swear to God I’ll push you off the bed!" He says laughing.

"Shut up you whiny baby." You retort laughing as well.

He moves closer to you bringing his hands to tickle you on the side of your hips. You squealed trying to push him away but he tightened his hold around you both laughing like kids when suddenly you realized how close you were the heat from his bare body felt like burning against your skin. 

What are you doing? You hate this guy, he is the reason Ethan is dead. You remind yourself gaining back your composure and stopped laughing. You went silent closing your eyes as Tom got the hint and backed off.

You soon fell asleep breathing softly but Tom was still awake staring at the ceiling thinking about all the meetings and deals he has to make tomorrow when you shifted on the bed and turned to Tom’s side in your sleep. You subconsciously hiked a leg above his placing your hand over his chest snuggling close to him. 

Tom found it really amusing chuckling softly as he took his time to admire how beautiful and innocent you looked. He went to wrap his arm around you just then he heard you mumbling in your sleep. 

"I'm sorry - I'm so sorry Ethan." His expression goes hard. He retracts his hand away placing it under his head and lets out an exasperated sigh before closing his eyes to sleep.

Next morning you squint your eyes open to find yourself practically laying over Tom's chest, you sit up hastily waking him up in the process. 

"Good morning, princess." He says with a groggy voice. You look at him timidly. 

"By the drool I’m assuming you slept well." You frown rubbing the corner of your mouth with the back of your hand. 

"So much for chopping my hands eh?" He snickers. "But what about you taking advantage of me while sleeping." you felt your face heat up in embarrassment.

"Sorry I used to have a side pillow when I slept."

"Oh it's ok, love. I'm honored to be your human side pillow.'' he says cockily before getting off the bed to get ready for the day. 

"Dickhead" You mutter under your breath.

****

 You went to punch his chest, but William blocked it

"As a devout feminist, I refuse to say that you hit like a girl." William quipped letting go of you, and you spin around in frustration

"Let's try this again, shall we?" 

"Tell me again why I have to learn self defense this early in the morning." 

William began to roll up his sleeves to better move around "You are my  responsibility." 

You smiled "...says the feminist." William chuckled. 

"Fighting is rhythm. There is a music, there is a meter, there is a pattern. Let that rhythm beat within you." He stood defensively and nods at you. 

"Again." you put up your fists and start to fight him, but he easily blocks your blows. You two spin and continued practicing. You struck him again but he blocks it. 

"Legato" You strike again with increased force,

"Ostinato" You strike back with all your force. 

"Crescendo" You managed to hit him, but he blocked the majority of it and held you by your neck. 

"And then, once you've established your cadence--" You spun out of his grip, kicking him, and pressed him against the wall while he's distracted. 

" --You change the key." you said smiling proudly. 

 "Very nice." He said a little out of breath. "But none of this matters if you cannot make the kill." 

"But I don't want to kill anyone." 

"You will. To survive" He said.

You stepped back to catch your breath from the intense workout.

"Now c’mon we will learn something new today." He brought two wooden staff and throws one at you out of the blue which you barely catch.

"Hey! I wasn't ready!" You protested. 

"First lesson-- always be on your guard." He instructed. You took note of the weight of the staff in your hands for a moment.

"It's heavy." 

"I was half your age the first time my father gave me the staff. I would have torn every muscle rather than let him see me strain. And, had I--" He attacked you, you barely blocked his blow "-- he would have corrected me." 

"No offense, but your dad sounds like a jerkwad" You panted. 

"Mothers love their children. Fathers make them strong" He attacked you again, and though you struggle to keep up, you manage to continue blocking him.

"Well in my case my daddy doesn't care 'cause he already kind of bidded me off in a stupid deal--" You started to fight back  "-- and my mother is quite ardent to make me strong enough to face anything what is to come my way" You grunt while attacking but William easily dodges your strikes.

"You're anticipating. Do not let me see your move before you make it." He strikes at your staff, knocking you off-balance and causing you to twist your ankle as you fall and whimper in pain

"Get up." He commanded.

"I can't, my ankle hurts." You groaned.

"The ability to end your pain is a warrior's true weapon. Master that, and nothing holds power over you." You glared at him. 

"Now, on your feet." You winced. 

"I said, On. Your. Feet." He barked.

You continued to glare at him, but do grab your staff to use it to help you to pull yourself up on your feet. You leaned against the staff for support. William looked mildly impressed.

"Good. Perhaps you've actually learned something today." 

It’s been almost two weeks since the gala night William has been in contact with you providing you with valuable information. You were lost in your thoughts when your phone buzzed and you were broken out of your daze. It was William, you received the call. 

"Hey Will!" 

"Got some news." 

"Seems like Victor has grabbed quite a hold in the European drug cartel. He has been making quite some big deals." 

"Daddy is making deals with the European drug mafias?" You were surprised at this news. "But how is that possible? As much I know he planned to oust the Hollands off their turf first before taking over their business." 

"Working with your dad I have learnt one thing about him, ‘compartmentalization’ nobody gets to know about his real plans. And that is the reason behind his success." 

"I think I know someone who might give me more info on that. But the most important question is who is doing all the dirty work for him while he is sitting in NY." 

"A new gang has emerged in the city ‘the vipers’ but I’m surprised that the Holland’s didn’t happen to come across them yet." He says before ending the call.

Meanwhile Tom was at the docks of the London port accompanied by his brother Harry for a meeting with an old time ally.

"Gomez, after a long time mate." 

"Yeah Holland business has been a little rough these days"

"So my brother tells me that you wanted some negotiations to be done with the current revenue arrangement of the port area"

"Yes Holland about that you see you're charging an outrageously high protection money and for that I am having very little profit from my drug trafficking business" 

"Well mate protecting you from the cops and allowing you to smuggle through my port comes with a high price I told you at the beginning only." Tom says.

"Then I might have to rethink our alliance, Holland."

"You mean you want to call off the deal?" Tom raises his eyebrows.

"Yes you guessed it right" 

"That's really brave of you given that the narcotics are already suspicious about your activities" Tom mocks with a sinister look in his eyes.

"I'll take my chances and there's this new gang who are ready to provide protection at a much cheaper rate plus they are going to help me expand my trade to the States. And profit has always been my first priority mate." Gomez states.

"Well whatever suits you mate but the port is still under my control if I may remind you so perhaps you should start watching your back" Tom advises, malice in his voice and then he storms out of the place.

****

You have finally decided to have a night out and blow off some steam. You dressed up in a slip dress and put on your matching stilettos. Booking yourself an uber you were just about to go down the stairs when you heard some heated argument coming from the office though it was mostly Tom’s voice you heard and by the tone you deduced he was very angry. 

You slowly made your way towards the room to see Tom standing in the middle of the room with Harrison and Harry beside him, his men surrounding him as he yells at them. They were so engrossed into the meeting that nobody bothered to notice you standing so you quietly lean against the doorframe and listened to their conversation.

"I'm paying a bunch of assholes for nothing!" Tom barks. 

"Tom, calm down." Harry goes to tone down his brother.

"How can I calm down?! Some bloody newbie gang has been operating right under my nose! on my turf! and I have no news about that." He snaps.

You couldn’t help but the whole conversation made you chuckle a little too loudly drawing everyone’s attention present in the room. Tom was already seeing red with his business going into jeopardy and seeing you laugh like that he went ballistic. 

"Does something here appear funny to you?" He glares at you.

"Well funny things do." You retort.

"And may I have the pleasure of knowing what you found so funny?"

"Well seeing you guys all worked up about this whole new emerging gang snatching away your territory. I really feel pity for you."

"Thank you for your pity now you may leave, anyways women are not allowed here. I should not see you snooping around in the future near this room." He orders.

"Your loss I might know something that could have helped you in solving your little problem." You shrug and turn to leave. 

"Wait! What do you mean?" 

"Well I guess women don’t do business here so I better keep my mouth shut." You taunt agitating him even more.

"Stop fucking with me Y/N! If you know something then tell me." You pucker your face pretending to think. 

"Please" he adds softening down a bit, you sigh audibly.

"Ok then let me give you a heads up. The viper gang which is hampering your business deals is owned by none other than Victor Martinez aka my daddy dearest." Tom's eyes went wide as well as Harrison's and Harry's. 

"What! You’re kidding right?" You scrunch your nose shaking your head sideways dismissively.

"But-but we had a deal!" He was still in disbelief.

"Honey you made a deal with the devil. What did you expect?" Tom crosses the room in three strides and grabs hold your arm with a death grip anger raging in his eyes.

"Leave my hand, Tom! You’re hurting me!" You struggle twisting your arm. He slightly loosens his grip but still holds on to you. 

"What more do you know? What have you father-daughter planned behind this whole wedding facade?!" He spat gritting through his teeth.

"Hey don't go all out on me! I myself didn't know about this until today. He never told me about this secret gang." 

He scoffs, raising his eyebrows. "And you want me to believe that?" 

"It’s up to you if you want to believe or not but if I would be plotting against you why would I even care to tell you all this?" You pull your hand away "--and this growing hatred inside you I have thousands of times more of that hatred inside me for him" you seethe.

"Then what was the meaning of the whole deal?" 

"Well he wanted me to lure you and trick you into writing everything you own including your business to my name and then kill you." Tom is left speechless with your revelation.

"What? Feel the bitter taste of betrayal?" You smirk. "Now you’ll understand what I felt." 

"Okay then you guys have fun working out your plan on going against your new enemy while I enjoy my night with some music and drinks." You chirp enthusiastically.

"Now where are you going so late?" Tom sounded tired.

"None of your business" 

"Anthony, Michael go with her" He orders two of his men.

"No need, my uber is already waiting outside" saying so you left.

Reaching the club you order some drinks for yourself. You sit on the seat near the counter enjoying the ambience as the bartender hands you a martini. Though it wasn’t like the rave parties you had in NY but you really felt relaxed finally out by yourself after being trapped in that house for two weeks after your wedding which felt like ages. 

"You're Y/N right?" You look up to your side to find the red head girl from yesterday.

"And you're the hooker" You quip and she chuckles.

"Yeah I am, it's Sandy by the way." She takes seat beside you. "So where’s your husband?" 

"Probably still shouting at his men." You shrug, taking a sip of your drink.

"Not to be prying but what's the deal between you two? It looks like you hate each other's guts"

"Don’t know about him but I definitely do, perhaps after tonight he might start hating me too." 

"Then why the hell did you get married?" 

"Well honey things don't work like that in the mob. A wedding is just a strategic alliance between two families for their own mutual benefits. We just serve as scapegoats, our fates were sealed together the day we were born" You explain. 

"Well that’s some really messed up shit" She sympathizes. 

"I know." 

"But you can still work it out. You know he isn’t that bad, at least not in bed" She grins cheekily. 

"Okay I didn’t need to know that" You chuckle sarcastically. 

"You’re really missing a good dick girl, that you can have any time you want and all your life." 

"Do I look like a nymphomaniac?’’ You laugh ‘‘-and no doubt he is a dick. He is the reason my innocent boyfriend is dead, I’m stuck here in this stupid marriage and instead of apologizing what does he do? He brings in girls, acting like a slut" You rant.

"You're bothered aren't you?" 

"No, why would I be bothered with whom he sleeps?" You stand up from your seat stumbling a little already feeling tipsy.

"-- you know what I'm gonna enjoy today, get drunk and dance my sorrows away." "Everyone in the house tonight’s drinks are on me! Enjoy the free booze!" You screamed. The whole crowd whooped and whistled.

"To my fucked up life!" You shouted, downing a shot. 

You made your way to the center of the dance floor and started dancing without any worry about tomorrow. Within seconds you felt two hands around your hips, you turn your head to find a cute boy probably of your age as you continued to dance and grind against him. After a couple of songs you went back to the counter and had some more drinks. You were totally wasted as your vision went blurry and pretty soon everything blacked out.

It feels like a struggle for you to open your eyes as you stir inside the covers. Huh? You squint your eyes open and realize you were actually lying in a bed. You slowly sat up, your head was pounding with last night’s hangover as you groaned holding your head. Your eyes slowly adjusts to your surroundings and you realize that you were indeed back home and in your bedroom. You look down at your body and were shocked to find yourself in just your black strapless bra and underwear.

"You’re up at last." You hurriedly pull the covers up to your chest hearing Tom’s voice. 

He walks in a pair of grey sweatpants and a tightly fitted black t-shirt, his biceps bulging out of it. It was really odd to see him in such an informal attire but he looks good, you slapped yourself internally for the last thought.

"What happened last night? How did I get here? And where are my clothes?!" You badgered him with questions.

"Woah slow down, that's a lot of questions at one go and you should be the first one explaining about your reckless behavior last night."

"Why, what did I do?" You frown.

"Oh you really went wild last night. For starters you danced with random blokes and then you drank more and got wasted. And then you took off your dress whilst those drunk bastards did body shots." Your mouth falls agape in shock.

"Wait what? I took off my dress in public?!" You were still in disbelief.

"Yeah and that’s not all” He says with a scoff “You let those twats lick salt and lemon off your body while they did shots. Thanks to Sandy who informed me on time." You rolled your eyes looking away. 

"After seeing you being used for body shots things got a little nasty out there and they had to close early."

"What did you do?" You ask anxiously. 

"That any man would do seeing his wife being touched by other men." He growls the last bit.

"What do you mean?" 

"I made sure they will be in the hospital for a good couple of months." He states rather proudly. 

You slap your forehead shaking your head in annoyance. You didn't realize that you had let go off the sheets covering your body giving Tom quite a view which he had missed the other day. 

He slowly leans forward, eyeing you up and down lustfully prompting you to back off until your back touched the head board. He crawls towards you further hovering over you reaching his hand out to cup your face.

"You really upset me yesterday Y/N." His voice low as his hand brushes your hair from your shoulder and travels downs to your chest fingertips gently brushing over your rib cage down to the valley of your breasts slightly tugging to the soft material of your bra. You caught hold of his hand to stop him from going down further, he smirks. 

"Funny how you allow strangers to touch you, but not me, your husband who has the only right to do it." You kicked his crotch but not too hard. 

"Bloody hell!!" He groaned as you tackled him down bringing yourself on top straddling him. You were far gone from feeling self conscious, sitting on top of him in just your undergarments. 

"Well the thing is I don't take you as my husband." You sneer narrowing your eyes. "And the last time I checked, you don't trust me." 

"Well I never trusted you on the first place and you proved it last night quite nicely for the reason why” He says. “but honey I'm not letting you go so easily."

"After a lot of thought I actually think you could be a perfect leverage for me" He then goes to press his hand to your lower stomach "Moreover if you were with my child I guess grandpa Victor will certainly agree to some negotiations" He ticked his jaw with a devilish grin. You flare your nostrils fuming at his audacity. 

"I would rather be barren than let you father my child and give him/her this cursed life." You seeth. Tom seemed a little hurt by your words of how you think he's going to be a terrible father but he masked it with his usual cocky self. 

"Truth be told princess I love to be on top and in control but for a change you really look so pretty on top, can't imagine how beautiful you'll look while you ride my dick" He says tracing your jawline with his fingers. You swat his hand away. 

"You're such a piece of shit!" You snap getting off him. He gets up chuckling and leaves the room as you quickly get off the bed and run to the bathroom. 

Undressing yourself from the leftover clothes you ran a warm shower, the warm water quickly relaxing your muscles. You smelt of sweat, alcohol and cigarettes which made you feel dirty. You squirted some body wash and lathered your body with it before washing it off. Then you washed your hair with shampoo. 

You take your time before drying yourself off and walk out of the bathroom busy fixing your towel and bumped into Tom. His large hands held your arms steadying you meanwhile your towel loosens and falls off your body. You both looked at each other in shock. 

Tom stands there like a statue gaping at you, eyes lingering from top to bottom of your exposed body; ‘man you have a goddess like body’ he thought as beads of water trickled down your wet hair. You finally come back to your senses then it suddenly hit you that you were standing completely naked. 

"What the fuck!! Tom close your eyes!!!" You shriek out quickly bending down to grab the towel and cover yourself. Hearing you scream Harrison came barging in your room. 

"What happened mate?" Out of instinct Tom lunges forward and embraces you tightly blocking you from anyone's view.

"Harrison! Get the fuck out of here!" 

"Oh I'm sorry bruh. Didn't know you were busy." He cackles turning around. Some of his other men also came rushing in thinking something happened, leading to a total chaotic situation in the room. 

"Yes, who else is left to join the party you are cordially invited!" You yell frustrated. 

Tom is still guarding you as he yells sharply. "Get out of here you bloody morons!" 

When everyone is finally out of the room Tom steps back as you stand at your place clutching on to your towel, both of you looking away from each other. After a few awkward moments of silence Tom finally speaks up. 

"That was quite a spectacular view, you have kept things quite perked up I see." He says playfully. And that was enough to get on your nerves. 

"You!!!" You glower taking the vase you found near you in your hand to hurl it at him. He steps back a little, raising his hands defensively. 

"Careful love! That cost me thousands of dollars, though I don't have any shortage of money but still don't want a lovely art to go to waste just to appease your anger on your piece of shit husband" He snickers breaking into a laugh and runs out of the room leaving you fuming. 

"Son of a bitch! Uggh!!" You stomp your feet keeping back the vase at its place. Your phone dinged and you went to check, it was a message from William. 

W : Good news

..................................................................

Taglist in bio or send an ask/dm I’ll add you

[write-like-wright]

since you did the prosecutors before can we get exes headcanons for them (like what they would be like if they were ur ex LMAO)? if this is too broad u can pick ur favorite aspect of it (u dumping them, them dumping u, seeing them in public one month later 🥰 etc)

skjdksfnfjnf this is so funny yes!

Being their ex: Ace Attorney rival prosecutor edition

Miles Edgeworth

if you thought he was awkward while you were dating, wait until you see him after your breakup

he does NOT know how to behave around you at all anymore

mostly attempts to avoid you

may or may not pull another one of his "prosecutor Miles Edgeworth chooses death" stunts

goes to Europe for a few months to compose himself and figure out how to proceed

he's especially stumped if you are somehow obligated to interact, either through work or maybe if you live nearby

tries his best to be civil and gentlemanly, but it's painfully obvious he'd rather be anywhere else in the world at that moment

I imagine you'd have mutual friends, so before every group outing he asks if you're going to be there

something may suddenly come up if the answer is yes

*cough, cough* "I can't, I'm sick"

"boo you, Edgeworth"

I'm assuming you broke up either because of how much he works or because he fears for your safety because of your relationship

maybe it was just a heated steel samurai discussion taken too far

Franziska von Karma

oh boy, this is not gonna go well

so cold to you in the public

throws around a "foolish fool" or two your way

grips her whip so tight her knuckles turn white

cries when she gets home

absolutely cannot forgive herself for allowing someone to know her so intimately and see her in her vulnerable moments and then they're just... gone

probably puts her off dating for a while

if I had to guess why you broke up, I'd assume it was due to her intensity or competitive nature

Diego Armando/Godot

this man has many, many exes

not much changes in his demeanour towards you

he's as cool and as smooth as ever, but is careful not to cross over into the flirty territory

you're either addicted to caffeine or absolutely repulsed by it at this point

walking by a coffee shop makes you uncomfortable

don't know why you broke up, but you get back together at least twice before separating for good

Klavier Gavin

Klav remains his good old, friendly self

will drop an album about your breakup

expect a lot of hate from his stans

the media hounds you

you get invited to participate in a few reality shows probably

he feels bad and tries to defend you

offers to make it up to you by taking you out for dinner

you hook up

you break up again because you can't stand the constant scrutiny and him being away for long periods of time

rinse and repeat

Simon Blackquill

there are so many potential reasons why you could've broken up

too intense? scary at times?? manipulative without even realizing it??? spends half his life savings on a fancy katana???? who knows with him

goes full emo

do you guys know that canonically those marks on his face are from crying so much in prison? yeah (they're apparently starting to heal too, good for him)

acts all tough at work, goes home and cries to HIM - Gone With The Sin blasting at full volume

flip-flops between being a gentleman and a jerk should you meet in public

makes a few snarky comments about you and your relationship to hurt you, then has a minor freakout when realization.exe kicks in and he notices you actually are hurt

apologises by sending you cute bird pics

"Look at what Taka did today."

"He's wearing the bandana you bought him :)"

"Please respond I'm so sorry don't block me"

You eventually remain friends so you can get bird visitation rights

Nahyuta Sahdmadhi

acts polite and smiles sweetly, but occasionally ends the conversation with "I will pray for you", not unlike a hostile southern lady

you miss him and his expensive haircare and skincare products

you can definitely live without the 8-hour sermons

perhaps the cultural differences were too hard to overcome? or maybe it was the constant travelling? in either case, you mutually decide that ending your relationship would be for the best

I imagine dating literal royalty would be exhausting

Barok van Zieks

make no mistake, this WILL cause a scandal

no matter the reason for your separation, get ready to deal with some serious gossip

everywhere you go, you notice people whispering about you

"I hear they ended their betrothal with Lord van Zieks."

"Well, I say! Can't imagine dealing with the Reaper myself."

everyone wants to hear your side of the story and any potential dirt you may have on him

Barok acts as gentlemanly as ever, as befits a man of his standing

he's a solitary man, but his solitude soon leads to loneliness and resentment

his consumption of fine vintages increases by tenfold

whatever it is that happened between the two of you must have been major

betrothals are not lightly ended, especially with the heir of a powerful noble family

might not even be your doing, perhaps family got involved

perhaps, his family reputation has been besmirched? ahem

Bonus: Kazuma Asogi

poor Kazuma can't catch a break

Ryu gets a tear-stained letter written on 18 sheets of paper, front and back

"Oh, dear," Susato sighs. "I suppose this means the wedding is off."

while he's no lord, he is a prosecutor in the service of Her Majesty and the news of a courtship ending would be scandalous

perhaps, for that reason, and fearing how the public would react to your relationship (it is Victorian England we're talking about after all, Van Zieks' views are far from unique), you chose to keep it a secret

at first exciting, your secret meetings and whispered words soon become tiresome

the fear of being caught is always gnawing at you

he may lash out initially when you leave him

offers to make your relationship public, to hell with the society

you both know it's a bad idea

"This is all your fault." he sighs as he pours himself another chalice of Van Ziek's fine vintage.

"My fault? How is your poor performance today in court my fault, my Nipponese friend?" Barok spits out. "You have been distraught for days now, man! Pull yourself together!"

"Not you specifically," Kazuma brushes off. "Your kind."

"My kind?"

"Stuck up posh twats."

Gina walks in just as they're about to draw their blades

listen babes I'm a Kazuma simp this is the only way i could envision dumping his ass

[rainbowtransform]

@ethereal-deadly-clover @melancholycatastrophe

:) (def would consider checking out this post before for a little more context!!)

Here’s the thing: Dream loves his server. He enjoys playing with it, growing flowers and managing to coax dogs and cats out from the undergrowth of trees. He looks at the stars above him, big and bright and beautiful. When he decided to settle, Dream puts away his shoes.

He walks barefoot through the grass, feels the wind, and feels the earth beneath him. The word he has inhabited, the world that holds him close and murmurs words of love is huge. It’s awaiting his exploration, and hums a song that he doesn’t quite understand.

His feet are bruised by the time he finishes his walk. Bad scolds him for it, but he sees the faraway look in Dream’s eye, and remembers the first time he’d gotten his own server. “Be more careful,” he says quietly while wrapping them. “Shoes are important, and you’re not going to help yourself without them.”

Dream shrugs. He wriggles his toes, and smiles.

“I like going barefoot.” He says. “It makes me feel closer to the World.”

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Pandora’s Vault burns his feet almost instantly. Dream spends the first week hopping from foot to foot, settling them into his respawn hole, and wondering why it never hurt this much before.

Sam looks at him with no expression, and only raises an eyebrow at his hopping. There were shoes in Dream’s changing bag, but he’s hasn’t worn shoes in forever. The only time was when he’d enter the Nether, but he’d take them right off afterwards.

“They’re uncomfortable.” Dream tells Sam. “I’m wearing them.”

A sigh.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

He’s in the trees, feet dangling. Sam’s underneath him, shoes in one hand and a half-smile flitting across his face. “It’s almost winter,” he says. “You’ll get cold. You’ve got to wear shoes.”

Dream shrugs. “I’ll wear socks.” He counters.

“They’ll get wet,” Sam says back. Dream crosses his arms. No one likes wet socks, but Dream doesn’t want to wear shoes anymore. He hasn’t been for a while.

“What if I only walk on the Path? Or I only leave when it’s warm enough or I just go outside the community house.”

Sam raises an eyebrow. “You’re not going to do that.” He says bluntly. “You can barely sit there for this world, you’re always exploring. Now you’re going to dust inside for a whole season?”

Dream sighs. He climbs down the tree, and Sam smiles at him. He gives Dream the shoes, and then tightens his own laces when Dream’s tying his. “I’ll be back before this season’s over.” Sam tells him, brushes aside Dream’s hair.

Dream feels uncomfortable. Sam says his goodbyes, and once he’s out, Dream takes off the shoes.

(The others look away. They’ve gotten used to not trying; Sam’s the only one who still does. Callahan even took his shoes off for a week or two, trying to connect to the world like Dream.)

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

The thing about Techno joining him is that he’s calm and collected. He’s bored, but he hasn’t been through the things that Dream has been.

“So,” Techno says, looking at the shoes Dream has on. “Why are you wearing Velcro shoes? Can’t tie your laces?”

Dream shrugs. “The Warden put them on me.” He said. “He usually does before Quackity comes.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. I think it’s like a punishment inside another punishment. He knows I don’t like shoes.”

“You can take them off right?”

“With permission.”

Techno shrugs. “Well… I’m giving you permission.”

Dream shrugs. “The Warden’s supposed to.”.

Techno hums. He drops his cape around Dream’s shoulders, and leans against a wall. “Well,” he says. “I’m going to sleep.”

(And if Dream leans next to him, far away enough to not touch him but close enough to grab Techno just in case, that’s enough. And if Dream wakes up tomorrow with no shoes, Techno looking like he hasn’t moved, there’s no one’s business except his own.)

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Dream writes and writes. His hand shakes, cramps, but he taps bare feet against chests and dips them into the respawn pool. Techno takes the books, and flips through them, and sometimes he’ll make Dream laugh. He also just watched Dream and the difference between shoeless and having them.

It’s done, Dream thinks. He signs his name off, writes it in a flourish. It’s like signing his death warrant. Dream finished the last sentence, and hands off the book to Techno. He doesn’t read this one, but he does give a hard look in the camera’s direction.

“Listen, Dream,” he says softly. “I’m going to go away for a while. I promise, I promise, I’ll come back. But you’ve got to stay strong okay?”

Dream stares at him. “You’re leaving?” He says.

Techno takes the cape from the floor and drapes it over Dream’s shoulders. “I am. I’ll come back for you. Team Chaos, remember?”

“Team Chaos,” Dream echoes.

And then he’s alone.

(Quackity hates that Techno got away. Sam hates that Techno got away, and burned the shoes. Dream cowers in the corner, begging forgiveness even though he did nothing.)

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Drowsy, Dream opens his eyes to see the Warden putting Velcro shoes on him. Dream hates them. It means that Quackity’s going to do something and Dream doesn’t know what. Sam doesn’t look at him, but he does make sure the straps are tight on him before leaving.

Quackity comes in minutes later. Dream curls in a corner, trying to get away, trying to get them off, ect are they on him what is he planning sometime sometime sometime—

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

He’s lead outside, with a bunch of people on the entrance. He tries to reconnect with the earth again, tries to feel the world underneath his feet, but there’s—it’s nothing.

He can’t feel anything except the socks and the shoes that feel dead, dead, dead. He would have fallen, trying to grab something in his hands—grass, dirt, the shoes—if the Warden’s hand didn’t tighten on his arm.

The warning is clear: stop.

“See?” Quackity says. “He’s fine. Sam hasn’t done anything to him.”

Dream looks up at the sky, and tilts his head. It’s dark, almost like it’s about to rain. Dream hasn’t seen rain in a long time. He wonders what season it is, before his attention is snapped toward Antfrost, who looks him up and down.

“Why is he wearing shoes?” Antfrost asks. “Dream never does.”

“Pandora’s Vault is hot,” the Warden says. “His feet will burn otherwise.”

They ask the Warden a bunch of questions. They don’t ask Dream, but Ant kept giving him weird looks when he reached for the grass beneath his feet. He just wants to connect again.

Dream feels wind against his face, and he looks to where it’s coming from. There’s a shadow, flying low with the wind. Dream almost looks up, but doesn’t. It’s probably a bird.

The Warden’s hand tightens again, and Dream could feel tears building. Dream looks up and then suddenly everyone is staring at him.

“Dream,” Puffy says. There’s something in her expression that he can’t quite place. “Are you okay?”

Dream turns away and tries to grab some grass again.

“Prisoner,” the Warden says. “Answer the question.”

Dream catches Quackity’s eye, and watches how his expression changes from one of pleased to angry. The Warden’s hand is getting tighter, almost digging into him. Dream nods once, and the Warden lets go.

“Well, that’s a lie.” Technoblade says from above, and then all hell breaks lose.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Dream loves the night sky and the stars that come with it. When Dream first settled, they could see millions of stars above them and Dream made his own constellations. The stars glowed bright.

(Later on, it became too light to see some of them. But Dream remembered where they used to be. He’d sit on the roof of the Community House for hours, tracing where they were.)

But in the Arctic, they are unfamiliar. “Make new ones,” Techno told him. But Dream misses the old stars, he misses his fri—

He misses when there was no wars.

When it was just Dream in the world, he managed to bring a star down from above. He held it in his hands, hot and cold at the same time; and he watched it. It fizzled and spit and didn’t burn out for a long time.

Dream thinks he was a star, intimidating and untouchable. But he’s also at the end, his fizzle had sparked out. He’s not who he used to be.

He doesn’t know who he is.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

He tries to be barefoot in the snow, tries to feel the earth underneath his feet. There’s nothing except the stinging bite of cold and the dogs’ breathing.

Techno finds him, shoeless, sitting on his porch edge. He’s holding onto two pairs shoes, one Velcro and the other with laces. “It’s pretty cold,” he says.

Dream doesn’t reply. Techno sits down next to him, “Listen,” he says. “You lose the most heat out of feet and your head. I’m okay with you being shoeless in the houses, or the porch. But once you step off, you’ve got to wear shoes. Choose one.”

Dream looks at them. “Laces,” he says. “I can wear laces.”

“Sure, nerd,” he says. Techno leaves the shoes on the porch, and then gets up to go inside. “Phil’s making hot chocolate,” he says. “If you want.”

Dream nods. He lays down on the porch, and looks at the stars above him. A million, waiting for constellations.

So, Dream begins drawing.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Dream used to coax flowers into blooming early before the Wars began. Iris and Ivy, lilacs, and Lilies, asters and carnations. Roses and willows, and everything underneath the sun.

In the Arctic, they don’t grow. They shrivel because the Arctic is cold, and flowers are used to warm weathers. And Dream almost cries, when he manages to have a flower grow.

It’s a daffodil.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

The Syndicate come back from a mission, gunpowder staining hands and wither residue left on Techno’s cape. They’ve also got Redstone dust on them, but Dream doesn’t ask.

Dream watched them walk up, and Techno glanced down at his bare feet. “We can go on a training mission,” Techno tells him. “Somewhere warmer.”

There’s a break, and Dream looks down at his feet, and the flower that he’s grown. Niki and Phil are already inside, discussing what they should bake for dessert tonight and Boo’s already gone and writing something in his Book.

Dream looks up at Techno, and smiles. “Sure,” he says quietly. “I’d like that.”

(There’s something almost beautiful when he reconnects to the server. When his feet dig into soft soil, and he can feel everything.

Dream lays down, and watches the sky. Techno lays next to him. They’ve got weeks to spend here.)

[nochiquinn]

exandria unlimited: kymal: part 2: I planned for this

not adele dazeem

h a t s

"I feel like critical role's so serious" "WHAT"

sends that clip to all the "critical role was never this crass" tlovm critics

they got her

erica seems so much more comfortable tonight

pick-me casino

"I got fiddle-fingers!"

POODLE PIP

oh, oxboxtra does that one sometimes

see, bell's hells, THEY get it

I'm love him

mor: brumestone dorian: [rapid blinking]

spaceship

"and hide his dumb ass"

BOOP ACTION

matt teaching aimee and erica how to hit dice

rip aabria's voice

the chroma conclave getting turned into a tacky theme spa is the BEST

"no ringworm for dorian"

"he's not little, he's 6''6'!"

the way opal's face dropped at "thordak"

orym would probably also have had...some reaction

dariax

"it's kinda disrespectful but. y'know."

"I've always wanted to see the top of your head!" "👀" "NO"

"you can't get pregnant in a hot tub - you COULD get chlamydia!"

(edit from the future: I can't believe I spelled that right the first time)

jinoir :(

I need them to adopt and protect this child

"dorian's a taurus for sure" can we not call me out personally in this moment

ouchie check

for the record laying on pokey things is my absolute nightmare

"please draw it. and tag me."

dream check DREAM CHECK

comment cards

I love opal so goddamn much

everybody trying so fucking hard not to laugh over aimee

stop dating the episode

("no one who hasn't watched shortonegaming will get that" well maybe they should watch shortonegaming then)

(watch shortonegaming)

matt telling erica "it's fine, it's gonna be fine"

awakened vestige!!!

this is the dai character editor mirror

opal and the power of friendship

where is dariax. where is the back-to-back

"what should I do next" stop being a fucking dipshit

diligent, intelligent

they got the mother gothel treatment didn't they

GO AWAY AND THEN COME BACK SOON

"thank you for letting me do that, it was so disrespectful"

"she's wearing this, because we did the art"

cognitive psience

"sometimes cuddle buddies"

ted 2 again

"that is a man who let a pet rock die"

....birds of a feather

"will this be a pun list? YES."

PIERODIN

"I'm just gonna make eye contact with you, Matt"

LIFE NEEDS WINE TO LIVE

how long until the svg goes up for the vinyl cutters and their wine glass wraps

"she grew up in this buffet"

fantasy ostrich

big farm-a

"the exact same" gay

"we've moved a few couches together" GAY

"you gave me the power!"

innuendo as spellcasting flavor

apparently we are two hours into a five hour stream, help me

the early break is going to be my downfall

orym where are you

oh BOY

"you heard an eldritch language" that's how I hear all math

I don't like how much this guy smirks

dariax is a GOOD BOY

"I made her yeet a dice :D"

for a hot second I thought she threw it AT him

someone loan her a new d20

awww

what in the gravira

his mean little brainhole

don't love that!

"should have given him lair actions"

"look at the flowchart!!"

exCUSE

thrall? girl got a thrall?

poska-senpai noticed me

"doors are mysterious"

"the biggest boss I can offer: a mean door"

"do you think we care about money more than you?"

"as long as the money is out of this vault, I did my job"

I love one (1) himbo dwarf

"do you have some - it's just me, stop screaming - do you have some paper"

cyrus did one (1) useful thing

it's free gratis

this means in their future sessions - and there better goddamn be future sessions - they will have not one but two bags of holding

unless something really stupid happens

hello??

raven? matron of ravens?

(I'm sorry, I know why they had to change it, but "matron of ravens" will never be as smooth to say as "raven queen")

Dariax Is A Good Boy

even if this is a stupid idea (I have no idea) it is Hurting His Friend and now it has to Die

matt control your face

GO AWAY PIKACHU

aimee stop metagaming

"just smashing stuff?" "....yeah" "hell yeah"

anjali: wait I have the thing

there's an hourish left and I am in suffering

MAP

gaola mvp

dick around

"we're all impossibly stupid!"

"have you ever kicked a building to death?"

is fantasy c4 the only explosive you've heard of

"I'm really good at breaking things!"

"I had...a thought" "no!"

lmao the dice roller

"it's not that good a plan"

"I love you and I like you, and if this is not airtight I will FUCK you up"

!!!

QUEEN SHIT

god I want an exu animated miniseries

KING SHIT

did I compare the nameless ones to the dollars from durarara last time we did this

!!!

god I am TENSE

please don't everybody go splat

"roll good" "I'M TRYING"

I love her SO MUCH

"everyone turn into a simple machine!"

but they didn't HAVE machines in the middle ages

(this is more salt at tlovm critics, ignore me)

YIP YIP

the world's craziest poodle

wall effect!

smoke? clouds? probably clouds

here at the end I would like to state that every time they mentioned morrighan's songbird I pictured Songbird from bioshock

HEY

HEY WAIT A MINUTE

HER name? as is Mor is using someone else's name?

AS IN AN OLD WOMAN IN THE FEYWILD NAMED MORRIG(H)AN?

that was a sequel hook aabria you can't fool me

"we got 50k and a floating balcony!"

"did you forget their relationship started with peeing off a wall?!"

[shakes tin cup] spare a stinger?

no stinger :(