#me neither but boy howdy did i use a lot of them here!

[floralcyanide]

The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot

Joel Miller x Reader

request: BOY HOWDY MY DUDE do I have a challenge for you if you’re up for it. Can I pls request a little Joel x Reader with Angst 20 and Smut 2? I feel like there’s some way that the two could come together perfectly 🥴😈 Love you! by @o-holynight

angst prompt #20: “Please, don’t make this worse than it already is.”

smut prompt #2: “Don’t act innocent when we both know where your mouth was two minutes ago.”

warnings: smut, oral (f receiving), angst, situationship/ exes with benefits

summary: You have an on-and-off relationship with Joel, and have for quite a while. What happens when he shows up one last time? Will it really be the last?

word count: 2548

author’s note: hiii here is the 6th request for my 2k celebration!! sorry it's so late >.< I hope everyone enjoys!! I barely proof read so I'm sorry if it flows weird

masterlist | add yourself to the taglist here | 2k celebration prompts here | request a prompt here or in my asks.

“And if it makes you less sad, we'll start talking again. You can tell me how vile I already know that I am.”

ᴅᴏ ɴᴏᴛ ᴄᴏᴘʏ, ʀᴇᴘʀᴏᴅᴜᴄᴇ, ᴏʀ ᴄʟᴀɪᴍ ᴍʏ ᴡᴏʀᴋ ᴀs ʏᴏᴜʀs ᴏɴ ᴛᴜᴍʙʟʀ, ᴀᴏ3, ᴡᴀᴛᴛᴘᴀᴅ, ᴏʀ ᴀɴʏ ᴡᴇʙsɪᴛᴇ. ʏᴏᴜ ᴅᴏ ɴᴏᴛ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴘᴇʀᴍɪssɪᴏɴ ᴛᴏ ᴜsᴇ ᴍʏ ᴡᴏʀᴋs ɪɴ ᴀɪ ɢᴇɴᴇʀᴀᴛᴏʀs ᴏʀ ᴀɴʏᴛʜɪɴɢ ᴛᴏ ᴅᴏ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴀʀᴛɪғɪᴄɪᴀʟ ɪɴᴛᴇʟʟɪɢᴇɴᴄᴇ. ʏᴏᴜ ᴍᴀʏ ɴᴏᴛ ᴜsᴇ ᴍʏ ᴡᴏʀᴋs ᴛᴏ sᴇʟʟ ғᴏʀ ᴀs ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴏᴡɴ ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛɪᴏɴ

You always told yourself you’d never overstep for a man, even after the world quite literally went to hell. No matter what, you stood by that rule you set for yourself. Until you met Joel. You find yourself back with him a lot despite your rule, and you’ve chalked it up to a form of self-harm. Yeah, you had your issues, everyone did nowadays, but you went through a lot before the end of the world. You had your reasons for clinging to someone who gave you a little bit of light in the never-ending darkness. And Joel was that light, as much as you hated it.

And boy, do you hate it. Because he never knows what he wants when it comes to anything. It frustrates you to no end. The two of you were seriously dating for two years until he started acting weird. Tommy, Joel’s brother, had left the Boston QZ, and you figured Joel was acting oddly because of it. But as time went on, Joel became preoccupied, it seemed. And then you found out about Tess. She was someone Joel worked with in trading, and you never thought much about her until you heard whispers amongst people about them being together. After stewing about it and deciding whether or not to bring it up with Joel, you choose to mention it to him to see how he would react.

You remember a pressed look crossed his face before he flatly told you they were sleeping together. Two years together, and for what? For a sudden lack of communication, cheating, lying, and not talking to you at all? You wondered what she had that you didn’t for a long time. But you realized it wasn’t her; it was Joel. He had his problems that you just couldn’t solve. You broke up with Joel, of course, but not long after, you got back together. But you couldn’t trust him like you used to. He was still sneaky and reserved, and you couldn’t take it anymore, so you broke it off again. Then came the rendezvous. You and Joel would sleep together every other week with no strings attached. Most of the time, neither of you would speak a word to the other. But it got to the point that it was unhealthy, and you had to stop it. Now, you just pass each other in the street with shifty eyes. After knowing each other for years, you now don’t speak a word to one another. 

But today, it was more of a longing glance that was shared between the two of you. You were in line to sign up for next week’s work when Joel was walking out of the front of the line. His eyes meet yours, and you almost look away, but his eyes burn into you. After a minute of staring, you tear your gaze away and let your eyes focus on the ground below you. When you look up again, very hesitantly, Joel is gone.

When you return to your makeshift apartment, you let your body fall into your old, dusty couch. As you tiredly stare at the opposing wall, you sit there, sinking into the cushions. You tried not to, but you thought about Joel a lot. What life would’ve been like if you had stayed together. What life would've been like if you had met before the apocalypse. You’re torn from your thoughts when there’s a knock at your door. You sit on your couch very still for a moment before cautiously getting up. Quietly, you step on the firm floorboards that don’t squeak to approach the door. You weren’t expecting anyone; very few people know you live here. You grab the shotgun that’s in the corner by the door, looking through the peephole. You see a figure through the scratches and blurriness of the peephole, but they’re turned away.

“Who’s there?” you mutter through the door.

“It’s me,” the person says with a sigh.

“It’s who?” you snap, “I can’t see you.”

“Joel,” the person says, now facing the peephole.

You relax, pulling away from the old metal door.

“What do you want?” you ask, still clutching the gun.

“I wanted to talk.”

“About?”

“If you open the door, maybe you’ll find out.”

You’re silent for a minute before answering, “What if I don’t want to open the door?”

“I’d understand if you didn’t.”

You sigh, weighing your options. A part of you doesn’t want to bother with Joel, but another part of you is curious as to what he wants to talk about.

“Alright,” you say, unlocking the numerous locks on the door and opening it slowly.

You step aside and let Joel enter your apartment, his hands stuffed in his jeans pockets.

“Were you really about to use that?’ Joel motions to your shotgun, a slight smirk on his face.

“Yes,” you say, rolling your eyes, “I didn’t know who was at the door.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t shoot me on the spot even after seeing me,” Joel jokes.

“You and me both,” you scoff, sitting the gun back in its spot in the corner.

Joel falls silent after your response to his little joke, clearing his throat as you return to the couch. A cloud of dust shoots out of it as you slam yourself into the cushions again. 

“So,” you wave away the dust, “What did you wanna talk about?”

Joel crosses his arms, “After seeing you earlier, I felt like we left things on the wrong foot.”

You hold back a surprised laugh and nod, crossing your arms as well, “Yeah. Go on.”

“And I know you probably think I’m an awful person. And I’ll be the first to admit that I am,” Joel says, still standing in the middle of the room.

“Uh-huh,” you say, pressing him to continue, still trying not to laugh.

“But I’m sorry. For not treating you well and being a dick.”

You don’t respond momentarily before blurting out, “Are you dying or something?”

“What?” Joel asks, furrowing his eyebrows.

You pat the spot next to you on the couch, “Seriously. Why are you apologizing for stuff?”

Joel hesitantly removes his jacket and sits beside you, “No, I’m not dying. But I am leaving.”

“Leaving?” you ask, confused.

“I’m going out West to look for Tommy,” Joel says.

“Oh,” you say, rubbing your arm awkwardly.

You aren’t sure how to feel right now. You appreciate that Joel didn’t just up and leave without telling you where he went because you definitely would’ve worried yourself to death. But you don’t know whether to feel sad or happy for him for getting out of this place. 

“I just wanted to tell you,” Joel turns to you, his face a few inches from yours.

You’re still leaning back into the couch as he sits forward, his arms resting on his thighs. The room is quiet, and you turn over his words in your head, trying to come up with a response. 

“Thank you for telling me,” you whisper, blinking at the wall before you. It has an old picture from the previous owners hanging on it. It’s covered in dust that you don’t bother to wipe off anymore. 

“No problem,” Joel says just as quietly.

He is still turned to you, and you reluctantly move your gaze to him to see what his face looks like. His eyes are fixated on your knees, but he glances up and notices you staring at him. He holds your attention, leaning in slightly. Joel is now hovering over you, slowly putting his left hand on the other side of your lap. His body traps you into the couch as you allow him to lean into your lips. They graze yours softly, asking for permission. You nudge his nose with yours to allow him to press his lips against yours, and the air shifts. You know you shouldn’t, but this time is different. It could possibly be the last time. Joel kisses you softly at first, carding a hand through your hair as you melt into the couch. Suddenly, he grabs hold of your hips with both hands, pulling you onto his lap. You let out a small yelp at the quick movement before Joel interrupted your exclamation by kissing you again. He keeps his hands on your hips, his fingers massaging the skin that revealed itself from under your shirt when he moved you. 

You lightly run your tongue across Joel’s bottom lip, nipping at it and trying your best to get him to open his mouth up for you. He obliges finally, but not before he takes the reins. He smartly controls your tongue with his, heavily breathing through his nose as the kiss becomes even more heated. You wiggle your hips slightly against Joel’s lap, trying to get a little bit of friction. His grip on you tightens when your core presses against his at a delicious angle. You moan into Joel’s mouth quietly, which drives him crazy. He wants to hear you moan louder. So, he sneaks his hands up from your hips under your shirt and to your breasts, giving them a harsh squeeze. A whimper leaves your mouth as you grind your hips against Joel harder than before. Before you can react, Joel moves you off his lap back onto the couch, and he moves to the floor onto his knees in front of you. He moves his hands to the fly of your jeans, deftly unbuttoning and unzipping them before pulling them down your legs. 

You feel dizzy with the whirlwind of everything happening so quickly, but your heart is racing in your chest in a good way, and you grow wet at the sight of Joel on his knees for you. He kisses and bites at your thighs, avoiding the area where you need him most. You squirm as his stubble tickles your delicate skin, and he spreads his hands on your thighs, pressing his palms down to keep your legs still. Joel’s breath hits your clothed core, sending chills up your body. He moves one of his hands to run a finger up your slit, a smirk growing on his face from the dampness that appears on your underwear. 

“Who’s got you this wet, hmm?” he hums, sinking his teeth into your thigh, making eye contact with you through his lashes.

“You,” you say shakily, putting your hand in Joel’s hair.

“Good,” he says, pulling the middle of your underwear from you and letting it snap back into place, eliciting a whine from you.

Joel peels your underwear off you, slowly gliding them down your legs before tossing them somewhere beside him. He carefully licks a stripe up your wet folds, gathering spit and arousal with his tongue before circling it around your clit and sucking it once before pulling away. Joel all but gawks at the sight of you, all wet for him and only him. One thing he loved about sex with you was how soaked he could get you. Joel laps at you, the sound of your wetness the only sound in the room other than your shaky breaths. Joel rests your calves on his shoulders, allowing him to shove his face closer into you. He sticks his tongue inside you as far as you’ll allow, licking around and twisting his tongue in languid movements. A cry escapes your lips at the feeling of his index and middle finger pinching at your clit as his tongue fucks you. 

“You taste so good,” Joel groans, pulling back from you momentarily before delving right back in without mercy.

His fingers dig into your calf and shin muscles as he sucks and licks you up. You bite your lip to not moan too loudly for others in the building to hear. You grasp at your breasts through your shirt as Joel assaults your clit with his tongue and lips, sucking at it harshly. The feeling causes electricity to spread through your body as a familiar warmth stirs in the pit of your stomach. Your fingers in Joel’s hair curl and pull as a warning, and he continues his rhythm of nipping and sucking your clit between his teeth and tongue. One particular roll of it suddenly sends you over the edge, and you’re writhing around on the couch as you all but gush all over Joel’s face.

“Sorry,” you say shyly, trying to catch your breath as you watch Joel wipe his face with his jacket.

“Nothing to be sorry for,” Joel shakes his head.

“Do you want me to?” you ask, motioning toward his bulge.

“No, it’s fine,” Joel waves a hand at you, putting his jacket back on.

“You’re acting weird,” you say without thinking.

“How so?” Joel pauses.

“Did I do something wrong?”

“No,” Joel says, “I just have to go.”

You figure he had something to do. He always does, but why come here for a goodbye and a quickie and suddenly leave? This was probably the last time you’d see Joel again, and he’s just abruptly leaving after giving you an earth-shattering orgasm. 

“So fast?” you ask, fumbling for your underwear and jeans from the floor, “You just got here.”

Joel stands up straight, wordlessly looking at you the way he does when he’s trying to reiterate his point. You purse your lips and glared at him.

“This could be the last time we see each other, Joel. Please stay for a little while longer instead of just fucking me and leaving like always.”

“Please, don’t make this worse than it already is.”

You furrow your eyebrows at him, “What are you talking about?”

“Yes, this could be the last time we ever see each other again. And I don’t want to drag it out because it hurts,” Joel looks down at the floor, unable to look you in the eye.

“Are you sure that’s why you’re acting this way?” you say. You have a feeling there’s something more.

“I’m not acting any sort of way,” Joel says coldly.

“Don’t act innocent when we both know where your mouth was two minutes ago. Either I did or said something, or you’re hiding something from me.”

“I love you,” Joel spits.

You physically react, leaning back into the couch. You cross your arms, “That’s not fair, Joel.”

“I know it isn’t fair. That’s why I’m upset. Because I love you, and I fucked up, and now I’m leaving.”

You stay quiet, looking him in the eyes. You take a deep breath, “I love you too.”

You stand up from the dusty couch, taking a few steps to be directly in front of Joel. You tentatively wrap your arms around his neck, burying your face in his shoulder. He wraps his arms around your waist, squeezing you tightly to his body like he’s afraid you’ll disappear forever if he lets go. But he has to. He has to let go. And so do you.

So you do. And after that, you don’t see Joel again. But you know he’s probably taking good care of himself wherever he is and that he found Tommy. Not a day goes by when you don’t think about him in some fashion. But eventually, you let go completely.

[lordrethandus]

Daily Writing Challenge November 2023 Day 7

Dream / Sting ( @daily-writing-challenge @kthalentia @corohveldha )

World: Final Fantasy 14

Theme: Space Banjo - Cosmic Wanderer

K’thalen sat in the pavilion outside the Veldha Estate, tuning up an old banjo he had found in storage a bell before. Thunder boomed in the distance, faint but growing louder every time the rolling clouds growled at each other, which only meant it would begin to rain soon; and out here in the Black Shroud, when it rained it poured.

People were laughing and talking and feasting inside, but K’thalen preferred it out here by himself. He hates crowds– always has. They make him anxious and terribly uncomfortable for as long as he can remember. Silence is his safety, solitude, his serenity. Perhaps that's why he can never seem to settle down with a woman and start his own family, even though he has women in his life that would jump at the chance. He's kept his guard up for so long he doesn't remember how to lower them back down again. A part of him was envious of people like Leo and Coroh; it must certainly be nice to have a happily ever after.

He heard the front door open but he was too busy tuning his guitar to pay it any real attention. Yet as he began to pluck the strings, the soft pitter-patter of tiny feet stepping across the yard drew his eyes to his left, and down. Staring up at him with eyes the size of dinner plates was Leo’s boy, wrapped snugly in a thick blanket that was dragging along the grass behind him. His tiny lips stained from his supper, most likely something easy for him to eat yet still messy, like spaghetti. He was still young enough to think tilting his head side to side would help him listen to unfamiliar sounds… K’thalen certainly remembers when he used to do the very same. Or perhaps it was a learned behavior for him since he has been partially raised by lalafells.

“Hiii…” He softly mumbled, rubbing his eyes with a small fist. K'thalen didn't really know how to talk to such a young boy, but he knew he had to be careful; anything he said might be repeated in front of his parents, and the last thing he wanted was to suffer the wrath of his mother.

He took a quick breath before offering him a half smile and a “Howdy.”

“Can I sit down?” Nolas timidly asked.

“This here’s yer home, lil’man.” K’thalen answered, scooting over. “Ya can sit wherever ya like.” He heard no argument from the boy, who shuffled over to the bench beside him and set his sippy cup down, then his stuffed hrothgar plushie, and finally his wooden sword along the bench before clambering up it himself.

“My name is Nolas.” He stated while making himself comfortable. “I am thirteen moons old.”

“I’m K’thalen. N’I’m thirty-two summers old.”

“You’re really old…!”

K’thalen couldn’t help but chuckle. Most folks would get upset from that, but not him– he wore his age with pride. Most Tia never make it past their twenty fifth summer anyroad. 

“Mom told me you know a person named Nolas too.” He continued, trying to rub the sleep away from his eyes. K’thalen stopped plucking at the instrument but only for a few moments; he still couldn’t believe Coroh decided to honor him by naming her son after his brother.

“Aye… I did. He was me only family.”

“Was he nice…?”

A pained smile flashed across his face as he was brought back to the days when he was barely bigger than this curious little boy. “He was… stern. Carin’. We uhhh… looked out fer each other most days. Spent a lot of time together, aye? But one day…” He had to stop himself mid-sentence– he didn’t know if the boy had a concept of death yet or not. “One day he had to go away…”

“Do you miss him…?” Asked Nolas, leaning forward to gaze up into his eyes.

“Every day.”

“Will I meet him?”

“One day, lil’man. One day…”

Nolas didn’t ask anymore questions once he started playing the banjo again. All around them came the soft patter of raindrops striking the wooden pavilion and the grass, but neither of them seemed to notice; the boy was entranced by the music, and the man was just trying to focus on playing. Yet his mind wandered.

He was there when the boy was born. Pacing back and forth with Augusta outside of the clinic, he had never heard Coroh scream so loudly; when the screaming stopped, and they peeked in to check to make sure everything was okay, he was the third person to hold the baby. Nolas was barely the size of his hand then, but he was still loud enough to hurt his ears while he wailed and cried. Seeing him now, just over a year later, almost brought a tear to his eye. The boy was falling asleep with a full stomach, and slumped over to rest on his leg barely a few minutes into the song. 

He was a good kid, at least K’thalen hoped so. Seeing him wrapped in his blanket with his sippy cup in his lap was enough to make a grown man cry. Perhaps once his business with the Black Adders was over he could settle down and start a family; the prospect of having a son of his own was tempting enough… but was it the right choice? Broken people making broken people was not his intention, but he felt a little selfish believing he could potentially do better. The idea of a K’thalen Jr. around to teach how to fish, or how to step dance, was almost enough to make this cowboy want a son for himself.

Almost.

[waveridden]

i haven't gotten to do a deep dive blaseball numbers question in a while. so when @leonstamatis asked a question and i realized i was curious, i got excited.

how common/likely is it for a blb player to have a completely unique name that they do not share with anyone. a first and last name, neither of which has been given to anyone else yet.

TLDR: 5.5% of all randomly-generated names are fully unique, and 7% of randomly-generated names of beta players are fully unique within the beta.

but let's break it down a little more.

so first thing's first: i needed a list of players. a quick check with sibr and i ended up using astrology to get two lists: one of all the players from the beta/gamma teams, and one of all the players on delta/coronation teams. i merged the lists and made a note of when players first appeared: beta, coronation, coffee cup, prehistory, the forbidden short circuits teams that didn't make it onto the website, you get the idea.

final list: 5,072 names. boy howdy.

next: nonrandom names! a lot of names were generated in nonrandom ways, like replicas (which are all named after the original player), coffee cup teams (where the artists/data witches/real game band were all manually named), and even things like evelton mcblase ii and bontgomery mullock, where the name is based on another randomly generated name.

list of random names: 4,876. if that's not 3.8% more manageable then i don't know what is!

from there the steps were pretty simple. separate the names into first/given names and last/surnames, see how many of each of those was unique, and then see how many names were not shared with anyone else.

so looking at all of the 4,876 players randomly generated ever at all:

752 have unique first names (15.4%)

926 have unique surnames (19%)

259 have completely unique names (5.3%)

most of the 259 unique names come from prehistory, with an overwhelming 51%, followed by 26% from beta and 13% from the coronation era.

of course, most of us are here primarily for the beta, so how does that stack up? there are 973 names generated that were on beta teams, either in active play or in the shadows. of those 973 names,

227 have unique first names (23%)

250 have unique last names (25.7%)

68 have completely unique names (7%)

for me, this all naturally leads to another question: what are the most common names? across all 4,876 players the most common first names are:

dimi (12)

sebastian (12)

chandra (10)

ruth (10)

bennett (10)

bernie (10)

dagmar (10)

dominic (10)

eliot (10)

wyatt (10, although 4 of these are due to the wyatt masoning)

and the most common surnames are:

murphy (12)

davis (11)

caster (10)

highway (10)

horne (10)

schofield (10)

based on these numbers, which names are the least unique - that is to say, who has the most other players that match either their first or last name?

juan murphy (6 other juans, 11 other murphys)

eliot schofield (8 other eliots, 9 other schofields)

sebastian owens (11 other sebastians, 6 other owenses)

dimi santana (11 other sebastians, 6 other santanas)

and the final question: what full names have been randomly generated more than once? there are 8, and all of them happened in short circuits:

bees manhattan

candy finnegan

copernicus biscuits

layla pork

levar shoemaker

sancho thrower

tall everts

worf hatchler

and notably, the pairs of candy finnegan and layla pork were within the same short circuit! every other pair was across two different circuits.

if you're interested in name uniqueness, here's my spreadsheet - i did the legwork so you don't have to! please drop me a line if you notice anything weird (sooooooo many nonrandom names have snuck into my random names tab) and if you do any other name number crunching, let me know about that too!

[measureyourlifeincake]

ding dong the witch is dead

geddit? melting? cuz shes. shes made of. shes made of w

[mokutone]

sorry if this is random but i was just curious about your thoughts on sai? i know you have a lot of thoughts on yamato fhdjdlfn and his and yamato’s relationship always seemed so interesting and really underdeveloped :[ theyre both really similar but yamato was able to get out of ROOT before sai was, and i was just wondering if you had any thoughts on that/him to share. sorry if this is weird or out of the blue djshfkfj love your art!!

that's not weird at all!!! actually the day u sent this question in i had finalized the thumbnails (and started on the pencils!) for a comic wherein Yamato comments on how Sai is handling his transition out of ROOT differently than Yamato himself did! I don't want to lay all my thoughts on that out here, because I think i'm much more clumsy with textposts than with comics, but I appreciate the question and I will share some thoughts!

under a readmore tho bc. this got Long...comics force me to be concise but w/ a keyboard under my hands i just chatter

here's something I've been thinking abt! I think they had fundamentally different experiences in ROOT, and this is reflected in their attitudes towards Danzō, as well as the way they interact with the people outside of ROOT.

Sai seems to have no real loyalty to Danzō. He does what Danzō says because Danzō gives him his orders, when he practices his fake smile in front of Danzō, Danzō immediately tells him to cut that shit out. I don't think there's a lot of love lost there—when team Kakashi catches up to him in orochimaru's hideout, and they kind of confront him, and. also kind of. "give him the option" of abandoning his mission (and ROOT along with it) or. you know. facing shinobi consequences. he doesn't really seem to think much of it? honestly. i imagine he was probably a little more relieved than anything else. Add to that him remembering how he wanted to finish the drawing of his brother—

actually wait hang on thats another point I want to talk about. Sai was pitted against the person he was closest to in order to traumatize him into numbness! wack! I think that's kind of at the root (help.) of why I see him as a fundamentally angrier character than I see Yamato—and why I interpret some of his behavior not just as Not Knowing How People Work (although he does have trouble with this! it's a very different vibe. like. him trying to comfort Naruto and Naruto thinking Sai was coming onto him was an entirely different kind of situation) but as like. intentionally inflammatory sometimes...like. he's insulted the bodies of most of the people around him in one way or another, he knows it pisses them off, he does keep doing it. I think him Causing Problems On Purpose is sometimes just a way for him to try and experience catharsis for a fury he doesn't really know he's repressing. Like. idk. it's one thing to be forced to hurt yourself, that's deeply upsetting, disembodying, traumatizing, but it's another to be forced into a situation where you're to hurt somebody you love (regardless of the outcome) like. idk. its a kind of powerlessness that hits different at least ime, and frustration and resentment are extremely normal reactions to a situation like that. i think. a number of things could be appealing to him abt trying to get others to get angry at him—whether it's Him being the one to Cause another persons anger (which could confer a kind of. feeling of control) or him seeing himself reflected in their anger (like a "boy howdy i recognize this emotion. it's very clear. very understandable") or even seeing how they handle the anger. kishimoto definitely doesn't care nearly as much about Sai's anger. but i found the implication of it compelling as a kid, and I find it more compelling as an adult! anger can be an incredibly healing and protective force sometimes when dealing w/ trauma...and I wish kishimoto knew what he was writing about or that we got to see it explored more!!! ack!

yamato (as kinoe) had a wildly different experience when he was in ROOT.

we know he knew how to fight against sharingan, which. I think implies he was training in combat with Danzō, or that he worked closely with Danzō, or at the very least that Danzō used his sharingan on him. We also saw that (unlike Sai, who was rebuked for even fake-smiling) that Kinoe (at first) was not told to feel nothing, but instead instructed on how to feel by Danzō specifically. Like, mostly telling him to Feel Grateful etc, but I think him being told to experience specific feelings according to what Danzō thought was appropriate would lead to a different relationship with his emotions than Sai, who was told explicitly to repress them all at all times, and to not even attempt to preform them.

He also like. Thought. Highly. of Danzō, not just as a leader but as a person...it's kind of undeniable that Kinoe saw him as right, was willing to brand his own feelings and intuition wrong if it crossed Danzō's, openly sought Danzō's approval, when he fails his mission to secure Kakashi's eye, his reaction is. essentially immediately to return himself to Danzō to face whatever new dehumanization Danzō's got for him— even when Kakashi and Hiruzen drag him out of there he thanks Danzō for everything, and he seems genuine about it, despite. everything. He's more expressive than Sai for sure, He had like. a moment of anger, when he said that he wanted to be Tenzō, and Danzō denied him that basic self identification...but it's quickly squashed. Messy. Messy. I think. I think he has a little more trouble getting in touch w/ his anger than Sai bc of his emotional closeness to Danzō.

i think. because yamato knows that he was something more like Danzō's favorite, and that conveyed a vastly different experience than Sai's, he might feel a little complicated about being like "So...ROOT trauma, huh? Hell of a thing!" but. i also like to think that he's very quietly kind of trying to observe and support in a way which mostly allows Sai to figure himself out—I think when they are older they would probably talk about it more (also because then their tongue-seals will have finally disappeared. Thanks sasuke!), once Sai has close friends in the village and everything

Just a lot of like. "I have friendships down. I have teammates down, easily—but what am I to the old woman I buy my cabbages from. What degree of friendliness do I exhibit to her."

"I think...whatever you're comfortable with is fine. I know neither of us had particularly normal upbringings, but you don't have to execute every interaction perfectly for people to care about and respect you."

anyway god this is so long and soooo based in my own personal HCs. I hope there was something in here that was interesting to you!

[haworthiaace]

Magic misfits! Did I update the masterpost specifically because of this fic? yes absolutely. A busy day for Scar, featuring TFC and some good ol’ Scar appreciation :]

The start of a new season was always interesting.

While TFC didn’t enjoy having to start from scratch every year or so; having gotten used to the comforts of late season riches, he did love the sheer amount of interaction that came with a new season. TFC was content to hear gossip about the others’ shenanigans while he stuck to what he was best at: mining. Some of the others called it cheating to use his earthbending down in the tunnels, but he called it cheating to be able to shapeshift, or use magic crystals, or any of the other crazy things the other hermits could do, so it evened out.

When he wasn’t down in his mine, TFC watched as all the other hermits scrambled to make the most impressive buildings and contraptions in as little time as possible. Many of his servermates placed more importance on finishing their creations than actually gathering necessities such as tools and armour. 

As if to prove this observation, the Boatem village appeared on the other side of the nether portal, populated with structures that were much too large considering it had only been three weeks since they arrived in this world. There was also a… tree? At least that’s what it looked like; a thin oak tree stretching up past the clouds and out of view. Looks like Mumbo and Grian were up to no good already.

“TFC! Up here!” Scar’s voice came from somewhere above TFC’s head, and he looked up to see the wizard (although he no longer wore his robe and hat) standing on a balcony extending from a truly massive wagon, one hand on the railing and the other extended above his head, waving enthusiastically at TFC.

He climbed the ladder up the side of the wagon, entering a sparse storage room. Knowing Scar, he either hadn’t bothered to move in yet or lost all of his things in a cave somewhere. Despite his powerful crystal magic, Scar still managed to die more than any other hermit, so the second option was more likely.

“Well hello there! Welcome to my humble abode, please take a seat.” Scar led TFC to a balcony, where he gestured towards a table and two folding chairs. Scar sat down, crossing his legs and folding his arms in his lap. “So, what brings you to our little village today?”

TFC raised an eyebrow at the question, confusion evident in his voice. “Because you invited me? We were supposed to have tea today.” 

Scar jolted in his seat, then proceeded to scramble out of said seat. “I’ll be right back! I have to go… feed Jellie!” This was quite obviously a lie seeing as Jellie hadn’t returned from her between seasons interdimensional travels yet. TFC’s laughter chased Scar into the wagon, where he frantically prepared the tea that he was totally planning on making because he definitely remembered his plans for the day. 

After about five minutes of mildly concerning crashing sounds, Scar returned with two steaming mugs of tea (decorated with cat faces, of course) and a plate of chocolate chip cookies - Stress’ recipe if TFC wasn’t mistaken. They sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes, appreciating the tea and cookies. 

“So, how are you holding up this season, Scar?” TFC took a sip of green tea, looking out at the horizon.

“Oh you know, the usual. I don’t have my village anymore, but the magical misfits still come seeking my help.” He brought a cookie to his mouth and bit off half of it. “Not that I mind helping people!” He swallowed his mouthful before continuing. “XB was here last week convinced that he left his coat in season seven, but turns out it just ended up in one of Joe’s boxes.” He chuckled to himself, wiping crumbs off of his jacket as TFC stared at the distant ocean, lost in thought.

TFC broke the silence that had fallen. “You’re a good man, y’know that?” The wizard in question looked at TFC in surprise. He was used to ‘thank you’s, but the personal compliment caught him off guard. “You’ve created a safe space for folks from all sorts of places, and you’ve saved quite a few of them from bad people.” 

Scar looked down, smiling at his cup of tea. He spoke quietly, a departure from his usual boisterousness. “Thanks TFC, that means a lot.”

-

Scar was in the middle of catching TFC up on what he missed from day one when something red and very fast crashed into the balcony. The something in question turned out to be Grian, shimmering wings protruding from his back. Something must have been wrong, since winged hermits tended to refrain from flying early in the season, in the name of fairness.

“Scar we need your- Oh heeey, I didn’t know you had company over!” He leaned on the railing, his urgency replaced with a forced cheerfulness as he (quite obviously) pretended nothing was wrong. What was probably supposed to be an easygoing smile stretched too wide, and his voice was more high pitched than usual. “How’s it goin’?”

Scar, completely oblivious, responded excitedly. “Oh, I was just telling TFC here about our adventure in the geode with Cleo!”

Grian’s uncomfortable smile grew wider, and his eyebrows furrowed. “That sounds great, do you think you’ll be done anytime soon?”

“Oh well, I’m not too sure. It depends on when we finish all of these cookies.”

“Oh that’s just wonderful,” Grian’s wings started to twitch behind him, “did you make those yourself?”

Scar took a breath, preparing for a tangent when TFC cut in, showing the poor fairy some mercy. “Alright Grian, out with it. What’s wrong?” Scar stared at Grian, somehow surprised that this wasn’t a completely ordinary visit.

Grian let out a long sigh. “Thank you so much TFC.” He turned his gaze to Scar. “We need a little help with curse breaking.”

Scar set down his mug and gave Grian his full attention, preparing himself for whatever strange curse one of the fairies had set on some poor hermit. “Really? How are you two cursing people already? It hasn’t even been a month!”

Grian’s tangent was accompanied by wild hand gestures that made it difficult to follow what he was saying. “Well, Pearl came up behind Mumbo and spooked him, he shouted something about not sneaking up on him, and now whenever he turns his back on her she teleports directly in front of him.” Grian looked nervously over his shoulder in the direction of Mumbo’s van. TFC followed his gaze, and burst into laughter again.

Mumbo was standing a few feet away from his campfire, spinning in circles and doubling over in laughter as Pearl kept popping up in front of him. 

Scar pushed himself up from his chair, TFC followed suit. The pair headed to the door while Grian flew back down, Scar giving TFC a sort of briefing. “Alright, let’s go figure out what exactly Mumbo did before Pearl starts feeling particularly vengeful.”

-

It took two hours and a lot of trial and error (with TFC giving supremely unhelpful tips), but eventually Pearl could stand behind Mumbo again. At some point Scar accidentally applied the effect to both Grian and Mumbo, and he had to beg the two not to create a space time anomaly. But it was all fixed now, and TFC was sure Pearl’s revenge would be swift and cruel.

Scar made his way back up to the balcony, and the two continued their conversation. It was a good thing Scar had enchanted his mugs, something he had done back in season seven after his drinks kept getting abandoned and going cold.

After a few hours of peace (other than both Mumbo and Grian’s bases abruptly flipping upside down while the boys were inside), the pair was interrupted again by a voice behind them.

“Howdy, Scar. Oh, and howdy to you as well, TFC!”

Neither of them had heard Joe coming, so Scar jumped about a foot in the air while TFC nearly spat out his tea. It turned out that Cleo was there as well, looking quite a bit angrier than Joe, although that wasn’t too uncommon.

“Oh my goodness, Joe you scared the life out of me!” Scar held a hand to his chest and caught his breath as Cleo got right to business.

“Sorry about that Scar,” her voice was flat, and it was safe to assume that she was not, in fact, sorry about that. “But we have an emergency. It’s completely Joe’s fault, he-”

Joe smoothly stepped in front of his companion as he cut her off, “I wouldn’t say it’s entirely my fault, old magic is a fickle thing-”

Cleo shoved Joe aside, stepping in front once again. “He revived my leg!” She raised a foot off the ground and gestured at it with both hands.

Sure enough, both TFC and Scar looked down to see that Cleo’s right leg was significantly more flesh-coloured than the left, restored to what it presumably once was. 

Scar’s lingering panic was instantly replaced by an amused grin as he gestured to the leg in question. “Cleo, why don’t you just get your leg reinfected? It’s not like zombies are hard to come by.”

The pair stood still, just blinking. (Completely in sync, it was eerie) 

Cleo rounded on Joe and punched at his shoulder just as he raised a hand to deflect her fist. “How did you not think of that Joe?! I thought you knew everything there was to know about-” She gestured wildly about for a moment. “Everything?!”

“Shouldn’t you be some sort of zombie expert by now? How is that my responsibility?” The argument continued as the pair went back into the wagon and down the ladder. As they walked off, presumably to go find a cave, something occurred to TFC. He cupped his hands around his mouth to yell down at them.

“Cleo!” She turned around. “Don’t use Joe as bait!” 

She snapped her finger like a defeated cartoon villain, as Joe turned to face her and presumably gave her grief for this evil plot.

-

It was only about five minutes after Cleo and Joe left (preceded by twenty minutes of arguing) that the next problem arrived, as it often did, in the form of Zedaph, Impulse, and Tango arriving on the shore of the village. TFC found this odd, seeing as how everyone was now connected by nether portals, but he assumed there would be an explanation shortly, even if it didn’t make a lick of sense.

Impulse shouted up from the ground, the three of them clustered near the front of the wagon. “TFC, we need your help!” Well that was a surprise, not many people asked for his assistance other than Scar. “We made an oopsie and Cleo said we could find you here!”

As every hermit knew, ‘oopsie’ was a versatile word with these three. It could mean anything between making a minor mistake in a build to banishing Impulse for the fifth time. “What happened this time?” TFC stood up and made his way down the ladder, since shouting down at them wasn’t very efficient and they didn’t seem inclined to come up.

Impulse started twisting his hands together while Zedaph and Tango tried their best to look innocent behind him. It didn’t work. “Weeell, Tango wanted a terraforming job done around his base, so we made a little deal for it.” 

Oh boy. Not much good came out of magical deals, yet the other hermits continued to make them with each other. Demonic deals were especially tricky since the demon didn’t have precise control over their end of the deal, not that it stopped these three. “Tango offered me his first beacon in exchange for the job, and it turns out that a beacon is worth a lot more than I thought- it’s probably easier if we show you.”

“Quick FYI guys: firsts are very valuable in deals! It applies to you as well Impulse, not just the fae!” Scar called helpfully from his still seated position on the balcony.

-

They all ended up going over to Tango’s house/ shop, which was literally buried in a mound of dirt and stone, along with about three quarters of Bdubs’ giant moon house. That explains why they didn’t use the nether. 

The earth was offended after being touched by demonic magic, but after a long negotiation TFC managed to convince it that Impulse meant no harm, and it was happy to return to its prior state. Tango was mildly annoyed that he would have to do the terraforming himself and give Impulse a beacon, but it was better than the wrath he would have faced from Bdubs.

By the time TFC and Scar returned to the Boatem village, the sun was starting to dip below the horizon. While TFC admired the beauty of it, Scar just looked disappointed. 

“I’m sorry.”

TFC raised an eyebrow at the wizard, a frown making its way onto his face. “What do you mean you’re sorry? Did you do something to the tea?” 

Despite TFC’s attempted joke, Scar still stared at his perfectly polished shoes. “This was supposed to be a nice relaxing day to catch up, and people were just showing up left and right. I mean, we hardly got to spend any time together! Maybe I shouldn’t invite people over with all this wizard stuff going on.”

“But we did spend time together.” TFC’s rough hand landed on Scar’s shoulder, the latter looking up at the former, startled by the contact.

“Well yeah we had tea for a while but-”

TFC had to cut off Scar’s rambling or he would never get to his point. “Yes we had tea, but I’m talking about the rest of the day.” Scar seemed genuinely confused at this. “I helped you un-curse Pearl,” he did air quotes on the word ‘helped,’ “We watched Joe and Cleo argue together, and you came with us to fix Tango’s house.” Of course he didn’t do much other than laugh at Tango’s misfortune, but it was the thought that counted. “Just ‘cause it didn’t go to plan doesn’t mean I didn’t have a good time.” After all, not much went according to plan on the hermitcraft server.

Now Scar was smiling. “So I didn’t ruin the day with magical misfits?”

“Not at all.” TFC reached for his mug and emptied it one last time, then stretched before heading out. “But now I gotta get going. I don’t like my chances against the mobs with my crappy iron gear.”

Scar waved once more as TFC disappeared into the nether portal. “Goodnight TFC! And thanks again, for everything!”

TFC smiled as he made his way through the nether tunnels back home. Scar did a lot more for the hermits than he realized, allowing them to be free with their magic in a way they couldn’t back home, TFC included. He’d created a home for all sorts of ‘magic misfits’ as Scar put it, and he performed an invaluable service, whether he realized it or not.

He’s a good kid. Just needs some reminding every once in a while. 

[thychesters]

Hiii sorry to be a bother but do you have any dickbabs fic recs? Or any fave dickbab writers 🥺 I've read all yours (which i loved sm and still reread reverb! Actually reread all your fics lmao also looking forward to your big fic!! and im in love with your dickbabs baby au, these our quite moments is so soft😭) (peanuts & cracker jack has a special place in my heart i always think what-if and this fics answers it for me 🥺idk if i even makes sense but yeah)

Have a nice day ❤

hello anon! thank you so much! i appreciate that a ton and it means a lot, and thank you for the well wishes!! i had fun writing those stories, so i’m glad that not only i got to share them but you enjoyed them as well! as for fic recs... boy howdy, here we go.

basically anything by @clearbluewaters/theragingstorm on ao3 for sure. you can’t go wrong. same with @gothamsgrace/graysonsflight on ao3! some of my particular favorites from both are 

call my bluff, call you "babe," have my back every day Dick and Barbara spend a rare free evening together.

& always ourselves we find in the sea by @clearbluewaters​/theragingstorm It was a clear Sunday in the spring of 1950, the seagulls’ call and the little church bell’s toll echoing through the small Rhode Island fishing town, when Barbara Gordon met a merman.

Not Like This  Barbara is finally willing to have that conversation. Just... not like this.

& Toeing the Line by @gothamsgrace​/graysonsflight When Barbara danced, she felt alive. She could forget about everything - except maybe the fact that neither of her parents had managed to show up for her recital. Fortunately, a pair of Robins make it a point to be there for her. One, the little brother she should have had, the other a boy who makes it complicated, toeing the line between friends or something more.

as for other fics, you’ll have to forgive how short this is because i’m pulling from my history while definitely not answering work emails, so a brief rec below:

Quiet by Anonymous Dick, Barbara and domestic bliss.

A Good Place by Luanna255 They’d come too far, made too much progress, to let anything sabotage the headway they’d made. They were in a good place. Not the place they’d dreamed of being, maybe, but a good place. It had taken a long time, after all the misunderstandings and hurt they’d caused each other, for them to get back to a place of absolute trust. There was a closeness between them that hadn’t been there in a while, and Babs did not intend to let anything threaten that.

Besides, she knew, if they talked too long, he’d be sure to ask the dreaded question–

“So, got any big plans for Valentine’s Day this year?”

Queen of Hearts by Irony_Rocks Dick has been hiding something for months and it's time Barbara finds out what it is. For a person used to secrets, her world is about to be turned upside down by the revelation of one more.

Cadent by katiesparks They laugh and laugh, warm and colorful. And it's a little like like love, but more like something else entirely, huge and yawning and spinning wildly, like falling down and not being afraid of the landing.

Cheat Day by chronicAngel "I love you," she says."I should hope so," he jokes. "After all the flour I swept up this morning? I earned that lifetime you promised me."

[mego42]

Shamelessly stealing @foxmagpie​’s monthly rec thing without the ability to get my life together to do these on a monthly basis so, seasonal recs! So excited to see if I manage to do this again with anything remotely resembling consistency but i’ve been keeping the notes for approximately 43 years (or since ~september, whatever that means) so by god i’m gonna use them. 

found my thrill - s_t_c_s / @sothischickshe​

Turner POV!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

guys turner is SO OBSESSED with Beth and Rio

both canonically and in this fic

it’s gr9

also features a weirdly soothing and relatable cord untangling moment as a metaphor

truly disturbingly relatable turner pov tbh

relentless boomer disdain, always a plus

led to the creation of this monstrosity, not sure what kind of a monster would do that

War In My Mind - mintletters16

Backread!!!!

post-213, gorgeous character study 

guaranteed to make you feEl stUfF

I really love the like, cyclical, fractured pattern of Beth’s internal monologue, it gives the whole thing a really affecting at times dreamy, at times haunted vibe

the end twist is *chef’s kiss*

mourning bells - Ejunkiet / @ejunkiet​

Backread!!!!

Later s2 era, Rio’s at a funeral, gets drunk and calls Beth

V short, kind of…..mmm, not sweet, but almost? Idk

It’s got a wistful sort of almost/i can be quiet with you vibe that i go extremely bonkers for

delinquents - foxmagpie / @foxmagpie​

Lol are any of you actually not reading this yet?

g o d ch 8 where do i start

First off how ABSOLUTELY VERY DARE for the tragic angst that is delinquents!beth boland. This poor baby, this precious bean. MUST PROTEC

SHE’S TRYING HER BEST AND I LOVE HER

zero percent deserves dean’s clammy hands, no i have not forgotten, tattooed on my brain, will never forgive

I also love love love love LOVE the ruby/stan subplot happening

(and ruby’s mom!!!!!) (seriously though you write the best moms)

oh god and baby beth starting to have confusing feelings about rio?????? *chef’s kiss*

p sure i was just like, straight screaming the entire end of the chapter

the dugout is like, pure serotonin

I can’t even talk about the closet

tHe teNsiOn

thank you i will take eleventy billion

don't give it a hand, offer it a soul - medievalraven / @medievalraven

am a desperate heaux for any fic that features rio and mick friendship

you are all incredibly shocked i know

still would not be mad if this swerved into rio x mick fake dating but beth x rio is cool too i guess

Speaking of things i am a desperate heaux for: DIANE!!!!!!!!

and DATING ANNIE???????????? Blessed

honestly this fic is worth it purely for the assertion that mick watches queer eye

Why don't we go to Venus? - watermelonriddles / @bensonstablers​

another grief study! 

apparently i was working through some stuff in september, idk, that was like 4 years ago

considering it’s the premise of the fic, i don’t think it’s a spoiler to say this fic is canon divergent and working with the premise that rio killed beth in 302

he is uh, not coping well

extremely haunted you might say

lots of marcus and rhea which is a delight!

rhea is to good for him tbh

i said what i said

truly top notch dream (nightmare?) sequences

the conversation at the end is extremely uncalled for

drop the game - Ejunkiet / @ejunkiet​

Backread!!!!

Am going to die mad Beth and Rio didn’t hook up in 211 but luckily this fic scratched the itch 

(temporarily, it’s a fairly permanent itch)

Bonus rec: missing scene series i wanna do bad things to you featuring 2x02 and 2x04

Viva Voce - zetuslapetus / @querenaxx​

Whoops we woke up married Vegas shenanigans!! 

So cute!!!!! So sexy!!!!! 

What more do you want?

am desperately obsessed with how beth can’t help stalking rio

feels right, feels organic

this makes me feel a lot of stuff about how they could be without their canon garbage between them

🎶 we could’ve had it aaaaaaaaaaall 🎶

you showed me colors (i can't see them with anyone else) - gild_fire / @gild-and-fire​

really into the use of color to illustrate beth’s emotional state, i feel like there’s a word for that but idk what it is

UNIMPORTANT

really nice job capturing beth’s inner vulnerability balanced by her outer stubbornness

am DESPERATELY into Mick playing matchmaker

more please???????

Both Sides of the Law - JoeyLee / @joeyjoeylee​

LAW SCHOOL AU! I suuuuuuper love Beth and Rio here (alt pov!! a gift!!!!) I love how initially prickly they are, I love how it’s evolving into a grudging respect, I love how INCREDIBLY AND HILARIOUSLY OBSESSED WITH EACH OTHER THEY ARE and neither one of them seems to see it

listen I know we’re all already foaming at the mouth over this one but as it’s gonna go down as one of my all time favorites it bears repeating/rereccing

cannot stress enough how masterful the use of POV is here, both voices feel completely true and distinct and I love how the alternating chapters revisit, reveal and emphasize pieces of each other

i can’t talk about this fic without hyperventilating

I LOVE IT SO MUCH YOU GUYS

the slow burn is going to ACTUALLY KILL ME

rip, no regrats

Earned It - wakeupflawless / @wakeupflawless​

spanking

that’s it that’s the pitch

H O T

living for beth’s exit in the first chapter, rio and i are both incredibly into it

second chapter also features violently possessive Rio who cannot deal with anyone messing with his girl so if that’s your thing boy howdy get on it

shake, baby, shake - openhearts

backread!!!!!

according to my bookmarks this was a reread but ???????

must’ve read it in the fugue state that followed reading for a moment we were strangers which is gr9 and I believe I have recced it before. If not, horrible oversight, reccing it now

beth and Rio POV lead up to the bathroom break, beautifully done, low-key feel bad reccing it bc the end point of both chapters makes me want to throw things but it’s super worth it for the tEnsiOn. ENJOY

What the Sea Wants, the Sea Will Have - flashindie / @pynkhues​

I’m assuming all of y’all are already reading this

If not OH MY GOD FIX YOUR LIVES

P I R A T E  A U

I’m sorry maybe you didn’t hear me piRaTE aU

meticulously researched, brain-meltingly vibrant, already painfully sexy slow-burning PIRATE AU

god where to start okay so first off, the world-building here straight up breaks my brain, sophie’s put in the work and it SHOWS

second, the atmosphere. i’m generally a pretty like, vague mental picture sort of reader but the sensory detail here grabs you by the throat and like, forcibly hauls you in whether your brain’s wired that way or no

and hey speaking of throats if you, like me, go a little funny about the knees at the idea of beth holding a knife to rio’s throat (he’s fine, calm down), there’s a v excellent beth-in-a-barrel moment for you

oh christ and the sexy tension

it’s gonna be a race to see which slow burn takes me out first, this or law school

Stunner - foxmagpie / @foxmagpie​

Another high school AU, this time with baby Rio absolutely head over heels for his older sister’s bff

stunner!Rio has an emotional earnestness about him that I feel like delinquents!Rio has already outgrown and it’s so SWEET I can’t get enough

Desperately cute!!!!!!

alL he waNts iS foR beTh tO bE hiS girL

also unreasonably angsty???????

ANN ARBOR IS NOT THAT FAR MEGAN

A Heart's A Heavy Burden - tooshyforthis / @bathroombreaks​

Howl’s Moving Castle AU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I love Howl’s!!!!!!!!!!!

perfect opp to roast Rio for being a Dramatique Heaux 

and it’s gonna be 9 chapters?????? H Y P E

author’s note boldly presumes I did not know I needed this AU when the reality is I did in fact know I needed this AU, I just wasn’t expecting anyone to deliver

so blessed

author also claims to not be team nose stud and yet it features prominently in all its magnificent glory

what is the truth dot gif

A Bit of a Stretch - septiembre / @septiembur​

SO????? CUTE?????????

would be on this list for Rio calling Beth E alone tbh

really really really really really love this Rio POV of being settled into a relationship with Beth

It manages to be sweetly domestic af while still holding the edge that makes brio brio which is a neat trick

@septiembur may be a witch

beth’s approach to getting rio to do yoga with her is hilarious and exactly right, canon-typical amounts of subtlety 

1000000/10

Post Break-Up Sex - femalegothic / @bethsuglywigs​

stg this was called Hit Shuffle

no matter

h O T

with a side of damn i’ve made some questionable choices in my life haven’t i introspection

(no regrats tho)

(esp not with this fic)

not the point of the fic by a long shot but i’m also extremely obsessed with Weed Eddie, so real

She drains my soul... she drains it not - niham87 / @niham87​

ABSOLUTELY OBSESSED WITH THIS CONCEPT

am a complete sucker for paranormal world building that satirizes bureaucracy 

Is that a trope? If so that’s my favorite

I did it. I’m picking a single favorite. You know what that is growth dot gif

ANYWAY i love the concept, i love the humor, i love beth instantly clicking with annie

I love her and mick’s sort of grudging professional courtesy

Love beth as a champion of environmental responsibility and all of the underworld being like …...okay??

cannot wait to see where this goes

Nine-Tenths - riosnecktattoo / @riosnecktattoo​

*INCOHERENT PTERODACTYL SCREECHING*

sometimes i think about rio putting beth’s hair in a ponytail and have to go lie down

science please explain why this rUinS mE

wait hold on i skipped ahead

HEY KIDS DO YOU LIKE UNBEARABLY CUTE DOMESTIC TENDERNESS

opens with rio sleepily holding beth’s hand to his heart so that’s the kind of thing you’ll be dealing with

uGH theY’RE sO CUTe

idk why precisely but rio adding hair ties to his bracelet collection is my undoing every time

Missed Call - foxmagpie / @foxmagpie​

Rio doesn’t come home from a job when he’s supposed to. Beth (and I!!!!!!!) slowly loses her mind

Truly a masterpiece of rising tension

Will literally never forgive her for calling this light angst

I was SO STRESSED OUT

The first person to point out there was an author’s note at the beginning I obvs didn’t read is getting blocked

crush - foxmagpie / @foxmagpie​

Listen even though this is centered around two OCs, they are OCs FROM a (n iconic) brio fic AND Beth, Ruby and Rio all make cameos (I mean, Rio’s pretty present since he lives in Mar’s mind rent free bc they are THE SWEETEST MOST ADORABLE BEST OF FRIENDS so idk if i’d call it a cameo but whatever)

and even if it didn’t feature any official GG characters I’d still rec is bc that’s mY SON AND this fic is TOO CUTE

I have so many feelings over mar and rio growing up and not knowing how to cope with girls becoming a Thing in their life and how it affects their friendship and mar feeling left behind but (SPOILERS) at the end of the story rio starts feeling that too and it’s so poignant knowing how that’s going to continue in delinquents

while mar may be my son, i also claim elena’s #1 stan status

before you’re like meg you’re only reccing it bc it’s a bday present ask yourselves do i really strike you as the kind of person that wouldn’t be equally obnoxious about this either way?

truly cannot fathom how hard i have fallen for these OCs i don’t normally do that

@foxmagpie is definitely a witch

The Ottoman - Niham87 / @niham87​

look i will be the first to admit that i don’t go near as bonkers over the ottoman line in 308 as y’all do

(don’t get me wrong, i love it!!! I love that he laughs and i love that she’s pleased it just doesn’t hit my lose my whole mind button like idk, the dubby or the 306 convo, idk why)

BUT i v v v much love the context this delightful Rio POV pwp gives it

am also absolutely feral for 209 missing scene fic

and anything that captures the complexity of Rio’s s3 feelings for Beth and how twisted they’ve become

so this scratches a bunch of itches, is what i’m trying to say

Bet On It - zetuslapetus / @querenaxx​

*INCOHERENT PTERODACTYL SCREECHING*

That’s what my brain does when I think about Beth and Rio meeting in ch 1

am DESPERATELY OBSESSED WITH the tension between the two of them in this fic

I love how it plays with the ways they have to rely on but don’t trust each other

plus FAKE DATING and BED SHARING (fair warning hasn’t happened yet but the set up is there)

originally supposed to be 2 chapters, already up to 4, prayer circle it goes on forever

do you like drugs (tonight) - s_t_c_s / @sothischickshe​

v important focus on hydration, other fic should take note

extremely about the use of cut to and then flashback to enhance the ‘we were on drugs’ vibe

speaking of, beth and rio absolutely would take ecstasy to prove they are fun bc they are the exact kind of idiots that would peer pressure themselves

so glad beth kept her purse, got a bit stressed there for a second, clutches in that kind of circumstance are A Risk

not that i would know

FLAWLESS USE OF VOICEMAIL TBH

really love the ongoing denial that they are remotely into each other while proceeding to demonstrate how they are in fact, extremely into each other, great vibe

rio dances

I know my brain broke too

mmmm bacon

Navigate A Broken Path - flashindie / @pynkhues​

*INCOHERENT PTERODACTYL SCREECHING*

I have a long standing tradition of getting unreasonably obsessed with side characters so i’m not like, entirely surprised by how obsessed i am with both Mick and Mary Pat but i never in a million years considered them as a ship

AND Y E T

they fit????? so perfectly?????? It’s amazing how she developes them individually enough that i look at them together and think ah yes this makes perfect sense for both characters

and they’re such an amazing foil to Beth and Rio? 

can ships have foils? do i know what a foil is? 

unimportant

GUYS you dON’T uNDERStAN d 

hell i don’t understand

how absolutely very dare you make me care about YET ANOTHER set of gg ‘verse children

do not read this fic if you have no interest in feelings you zero percent asked for

wHA t hAPPeNED iN aLASkA?????????

A Moment’s Silence - femalegothic / @bethsuglywigs​

*makes sign of the cross*

y’all are gonna make me rediscover religion

extremely appreciate the author’s note approach to backstory top notch prioritization

listen it’s basically 3k of beth deep throating rio idk what more you need me to say about it

it is…..good stuff

bless the kinkmeme or fest whatever we’re calling it

praise - civillove / @blainesebastian​

I mean you had me at “three times rio calls beth a good girl and one time he really means it”

ephemeral rio

I left that note for myself in here in the middle of the night and haven’t the foggiest what i was thinking but i stand by it none the less

okay okay i think i know what i meant, this fic (as do all of my fav civillove brio fics) has this sort of like, liminal, in the quiet moments feel to them that makes the moments and feelings somehow feel like i’m catching a glimpse of something secret and precious???

idk i just really like it okay

Heart and Soul - riosnecktattoo / @riosnecktattoo​

oh look more unbearably sweet domestic tenderness, this time to music

thank you ma’am for my life

rio remembers beth used to play piano and gets her one and revoltingly cute shenanigans result

also hilarity

and sexiness

this fic has it all, truly

shout out to mick who sees no reason to keep rio’s feelings to himself

good girls tumblr fic - prettylittlementirosa / @hypermania​​

cheating and reccing a whole series

It’s my list and i can do what i wanna

stop crying about it, it’s four fics and they’re all AMAZING absolutely impossible to pick a fav

truly flawless characterization, next level ability to capture evocative mood, cannot get enough

three’s a crowd: who knew ballroom dancing while dean watches and grinds his teeth could be so sexy 

(trick question everything about that premise sounds A++++ and boy howdy does it live up)

feel it on the way home: rio tries to break up with beth, it goes about as well as you’d expect

(thE angSty tenSioN)

i want to play the game: [from the floor] i’m still not ready to talk about it

(rio/turner, missing scene, 10000000% a taste of what went down in that hotel room)

june after dark: pitch perfect annie pov, really really love the take that Annie is the baby whisperer, can’t fully explain why but it feels incredibly right

(ANNIE X NANCY COULD WORK SO WELL YOU GUYS)

[angelsndragons]

Okay, since I see a lot of people either straight up panicking or saying that Caduceus’ playlist is straight up depressing (neither reaction I get)....I’m gonna offer a different reading of the songs here, how does that sound?

Death Bed Salesman - This is straight up about Caduceus’ family and his upbringing. His father even says some of the lyrics almost word for word in ep 96. Growing up surrounded by death and all the rituals created for the living left behind made Caduceus into the person he is. ‘This is how it has to end/So love somebody while you can’ like talk about a thesis statement for Caduceus’ outlook.

How are You Doing - Wow this song is pulling double duty. Caduceus is not a character who likes burdening other people with his own problems, preferring to keep a calm, polite distance between others and his feelings. The style of this song harkens over to Jester, it’s very bubbly and sweet sounding. Of course, this is also one of Jester’s primary issues (someone please tell the clerics they can be people with problems too). Now, if you do what I did and go watch the music video for this song, two things will stick out. One is the increasing ridiculous scenarios the singers find themselves in while going about their day to day lives juxtaposed against their ‘nothing’s wrong, everything’s fine’ lyrics. Two is the fact that these singers come out at the end of the song together, they have triumphed over the madness and nothing stopped them from doing what they wanted and needed to do. This song encapsulates early Caduceus, while he was getting a feel for the Nein and being drowned every other second, ultimately his contributions to the Pirate Arc were fundamental to the group’s success. 

Vegetables - Honestly, this song just reminds me of that early conversation with Fjord in the Sour Nest. Caduceus is cooking omelets and just casually asks Fjord if he could look for veggies down in the torture chamber since it would ‘make a good root cellar.’ Fjord is so caught off guard by this request, and understandably so, he just repeats ‘Roots?’ Caduceus then just lists off root vegetables like Fjord’s an idiot. Oh, Cad. XD Honestly I like that the beat line is being made by vegetable chomping, it just feeds into the ‘Caduceus is a giant magical cow man’ vibes and I love it.

When the World is at Rest - Xhorhaus! In the middle of that street! Xhorhaus! In all seriousness, this song pulls double duty as well. ‘I miss the sun but the moons will do in a pinch’ anyone? The first and most obvious thing this song reminds me of is when the group is given the house and Caduceus asks, ‘are we putting down roots here?’ With the single act of planting that tree on the tower, Caduceus turned the house into the Mighty Nein’s home. Can’t get your deposit back after that, after all XD. I think of how this home in the dark has sheltered and protected the Nein so many times. I think of them befriending Essek and how that wasn’t part of the plan (you know, like Caduceus himself). I think of how their plans to end the war were hatched in darkness, how violated they all felt when one of their own was taken and when another was assassinated under cover of night, because the darkness had come to feel safe to them. I think of how much the Nein has blossomed since this house became their home, since they all had a place to go back to that was theirs. I think of how the Nein has given the world a breather, a chance to rest, all because they returned a beacon and befriended a traitor. 

Wildflowers - So, there are a couple of interpretations of this song. One is setting a lover or loved one free from your own feelings and letting them go. Another is that the singer is trying to find a place to bury a loved one (’that home by and by’ around where I live and grew up is a roundabout reference to heaven). Honestly, both interpretations are apt for Caduceus. He does his best to not burden others with his worries and feelings, he was the one who stayed home, which granted his siblings the freedom they needed to leave, etc. The second interpretation fits Caduceus as well because we know one of his secret hopes is that the Nein will let him tend their bodies and graves when the time comes. And now I’m gonna put on my TeaHaw hat for a goddamn minute bc holy heck, this is such a good song for both of them, Caduceus reminding Fjord that he deserves freedom and his beloved sea again, Fjord teaching Caduceus to follow his heart and embrace new experiences. ‘I have seen no other/Who compares with you’ really fits their complimentary and praise styles with each other. Thank you, Tal.

Never did No Wandering - Don’t have much to add to what Taliesin said about the song. For once. I think of Caduceus’ loneliness in the Grove and his regret that he didn’t leave sooner. I think of how he could only leave in the context of duty, of just how much his duty as a grave cleric to Melora has defined and shaped his understanding of himself. I think of how long it took for him to voice his own desires and wants. I think of how he insists he isn’t wandering, that he is following a pre-ordained path. I think of how much work he still has to do when it comes to knowing what he wants and making peace with getting it just for his own sake. Also, hello more sailors.

When You Get to Ashville - Oof, so this song works both ways for Caduceus, both as the singer and the subject of the song. I think of him, home alone for ten years, wondering what was going on with his family, if they were safe (he knew they weren’t, he knew what it took to keep them from him), how he didn’t actually want to know unless he could help. As the subject, I see his family, having only been away for what was maybe two years for them, looking at the changes in him in awe and confusion. Nothing’s changed for them but boy howdy has Caduceus changed. The homebody has left the nest and saved them all and he very obviously doesn’t want to go home yet if at all. Caduceus has waited so long to get them back and to be a family again yet when the time comes, he can’t bring himself to return, as the singer implies about the subject. He knows his family will be there to catch him if he needs it but I think this episode is where it really hit him that he’d been trying to recreate a past that never could be again because he could never go back to being who he was. 

Fuck it I’m a Flower - Another Caduceus anthem. Upbeat with a few melancholy lyrics. You can take it as the singer divorcing themself from humanity or you can take it as the singer using flowers as a metaphor for their growth into someone who becomes more involved (the singer goes from not marching to taking on other people’s pain from their place of safety to fully embracing the movement to change things while they can). I don’t have any context for this song but it really freaking reminds me of those protest photos where a protester offers a flower to the riot police (fuck the police). Caduceus is blossoming into a man who genuinely cares about the wider world and the people within it. Not just abstractly, which I would argue he did back in the Grove. But being up close to the ordinary folks in the Dynasty, in the Empire, the Coast, has given him a new perspective on not just his place but where he wants to stand. I think of Jester’s conversation with him back in Oh Captain Who’s Captain, the world is much bigger and messier than Caduceus could have ever dreamed. I think of Caduceus befriending and being kind to their crew and Avantika’s. I think of ‘Nott, you went to find help, we’re here to help.’ I think of ‘one day someone will pray for a miracle and that prayer will be answered because you showed up, that’s what this is all about.’ From rescuing Yeza to saving Giants to shattering the chains binding two of his friends to bringing peace to two warring nations to separating justice from vengeance, just look at where he is now: no longer passive or uncertain of how they can contribute to the world, Caduceus and the Nein have brought so much good into it. Caduceus knows where he stands now. Some people say that he’s the Nein’s moral compass and I disagree with that entirely, he’s become the courage to act on their moral compasses. 

Oh Bury Me Not - Okay, so I know this is where some listeners start to get antsy with all the death talk in this song and the ones after it so breathe, it’s fine. Caduceus is a Grave Cleric, y’all. Tal says that this song is an expression of Caduceus’s religious beliefs, which, uh, yeah. There is no stained glass in the Blooming Grove temple, they do all their work outside the traditional structures of religion and civilization and do it gladly, etc. The ending Bury Me Not, okay, guys, Caduceus is the singer here, not the kid being sung about. It really drives home the Wildmother’s philosophy on death: when you’re dead, you’re dead and you have no say over what happens to the corpse left behind. I think of the corpse of the Great Hero and the founding of the Blooming Grove, the Menagerie, and the Kiln. I think of Caduceus’ onscreen death and how through it, he finds his path to the Kiln. I think of him reviving Fjord. I think of him and this island and how much of a perversion it is of the ‘natural order’. Also, just given how much Fjord has impacted has impacted Caduceus’ ideas of faith and signs and stuff, it’s so fitting that this piece is here. I also think cowboys and how Tal said he’d planned on using the Ocean Burial before he came across this, I see you, Tal. 

September Song - So that build up, huh? I think of Caduceus and the Nein readying themselves for a battle to the death to save Yasha and stop Obann. I think of all the close-calls and near misses. I think of how every day, these people choose over and over and over to stay together, in spite of the coming winter, in spite of the obvious danger, in spite how much safer they would all be if they went their separate ways and planted their heads in the sand. I think of how that, their time, is the most precious gift any of them could give the others. This is not a sad thing, by the way. All these people, who have been so badly wounded by others, who are so skittish and so distrustful and so guarded, choose to stay together over and over again. No matter the hardship. They choose to spend their lives together, they choose to be better together and for each other.

22 (Over Soon) - Guys, this is 100% an Episode 95-96 song. 100%, no question in my book. I think of what Caduceus doesn’t say to his family. I think of what he does say. I think of how overwhelmed he is when the Nein saves them, I think of how he can only muster ‘It’s been a long time.’ (All these years) I think of him trying so hard to be given permission to stay with the Nein without explicitly asking for it, the subtext of ‘would you forgive me if I don’t come home yet’ threaded through his every interaction with his family. I think of how Caduceus hands the seeds over to his sister and tells her to be the hero the Grove and their family needs. I think of how easily and willingly he gave up what he’s called his destiny and charge since the beginning in order to stay with the Nein. This is Caduceus saying good-bye once and for all to the dreams of things going back to the way they were. I think Caduceus had been hoping that his family had changed just as much as he had. I think if they had, he might have gone back with them. But they haven’t changed and he has. So he can’t go home. Not yet. He cloaks his desire to stay with the Nein once more in duty but make no mistake, it’s desire that’s keeping him with them, people who may not understand him but who try and who are there and who accept the new person he has become. The build-up Tal was talking about? This is it. The moment where Caduceus first puts himself and his desires above what he thinks is his duty. The moment that Caduceus fully realizes how much he has changed and what an earth-shattering revelation it is.

We’ll Meet Again - Meetings and Partings have always had a special place in Caduceus’ arc, especially metatextually. He was the character who replaced another, who was rescued from his static seclusion by three of the Nein and who in turn rescued the three captive members. I think of how this song is a promise that, come what may, the singer will do their damnedest to return and make that promise a reality. I think of all the weird and wonderful people Caduceus has met in his short time outside the Grove. I think of all the shop keeps who just love this pink fuzzball and how many times they tell him to come back. I think about the Dusts, the meeting and parting and sanctuary they gave him. I think about Reani and Nila and how his kindness to them has come back threefold (Reani escorting his family home, Nila protecting the Grove). I think about Essek. I think about how driven Caduceus became to reforge the sword after Yasha was taken, to bring her home. I think of Caduceus prodding the Gentleman into reconciling with Jester. I think of his delight in the coincidences that keep lining up between him and Fjord. I think about Caduceus and Beau and how proud he is of her growth. I think of his declaration in the dome that ‘We aren’t done until we’ve saved each other.’ 

Enjoy It - And we wrap up our playlist with another Caduceus thesis statement: don’t worry about the things you can’t change, find the goodness and light in all of your experiences. If it’s meant to be easy, it will be and if it’s meant to be hard, it will be hard. You’re the green bean and you can choose to become jaded at the storms or enjoy the water flooding your roots. This song also fits the lightness we’ve seen from Caduceus since sending his family home. His big quest, his reason for leaving home, has been fulfilled (so he thinks, pretty sure Molaesmyr will be calling in the Nein’s near future) so now he can just sit back, relax, and fully enjoy the ride.

TL;DR - Growing up and moving on is hard and painful but it is also triumphant and necessary. Learning to be who you are and to place yourself on your list of priorities is a journey full of quiet work that few rarely glimpse. Caduceus’ whole arc has been about who he is and what he’s going to do with the strong moral compass he’s got - Is he going to continue to live in the world, even with all the pain, struggle, joy, and goodness that comes with it, or is he going to retreat from it, go back to his little patch of green and forget about it? All signs point to the former, not the latter. In tarot, Death means transformation and sweeping change even more than it does literal death. Caduceus’ playlist is all about the transformation of his self even as he remains true to his core beliefs.

[yikesimonfire]

Howdy Neighbor || Alfie & Bex

Timing: Before the events of Promise to Bind. Location: Hallway of Alfie’s apartment complex. Parties: @inbextween​ & @yikesimonfire​ Summary: Bex drops by Eddie’s apartment with a gift; Alfie isn’t sure what he thinks of her. Content: internalized homophobia tw

It wasn’t necessary, but Bex liked doing nice things for her friends, and so she’d made Eddie a bone crown while she’d hyperfocused on making things yesterday. She’d had so much energy the past few days, due mostly in part to Mina, and well-- the stuff that had happened between them. Sometimes, she couldn’t stop smiling about it. Sometimes, it made her face hurt. The crown was littered with dried, pressed flowers that were sealed with preserve to keep them from crumbling apart, and she’d dusted off some of the small antlers Morgan had in the workshop-- way too small to even be baby deer antlers, so Bex really had to wonder what they might be from. They looked almost rabbit size-- and arranged them in a fashion she thought might suit Eddie. The coyote jaw bones really brought the piece together, as well. She hoped he’d appreciate the celebration of death in it. She figured he might, considering he saw ghosts and lived his life with them. But when she knocked, no one answered. Hmm, maybe she should’ve messaged him first. That probably would’ve been the smart idea, but she’d sort of wanted to surprise him. She wondered where he might be, as she peered into the front window. All the lights were off, which meant no one was home, probably. She pulled out her phone to text him when she noticed someone outside the apartment next to Eddie’s. “Oh, um hello!” she called out, waving. She didn’t recognize them, but then again, Bex didn’t know a lot of people around town. “I was just dropping something off! Do you know Eddie?”

It wasn’t uncommon that Alfie saw people he didn’t know lingering around the apartment complex. In fact, he didn’t know many people that lived there — even fewer by name. So when he got upstairs, mail in hand, he didn’t think anything of the young woman standing outside of Eddie’s door. As he reached for his keys, he ducked his head to avoid any unnecessary eye-contact. Soon enough, he’d have the door unlocked and he’d be safe. But then, in an unusually friendly voice, she called out to him. The sound of her voice made him involuntarily jerk (and almost drop his keys), but he managed a glance in her direction with a polite, but thin-lipped smile. “Hi,” he curtly replied. The question that followed, however, caused his brow to raise. 

“Eddie? Uh — yeah. Yeah, I know Eddie.” Knew him better than most, or at least that’s what Alfie liked to believe. But that was neither here nor there. “I think he’s out, actually. Can’t exactly say when he’ll be back.” Obviously he was out, it probably didn’t take Alfie’s saying so for the stranger to figure that out. She wouldn’t have been standing outside if Eddie were home. Still, while Alfie fiddled with his key, edging it closer to the lock, he figured his friend would probably appreciate him being courteous. “Didyouneedanything?” The words sputtered out in an incoherent mess. “Or, uh… Is there anything I can do to help? He — he’ll probably be back soon.” He figured the polite thing to do was at least offer to wait with her (Eddie would like that, right?) but thought it inappropriate to mention.

Bex didn’t really notice the anxious behavior as she fussed with the phone and the crown in her hands, trying not to drop either one of them. At least her clumsiness had never extended to her hands. She managed to type out a text before the other boy mumbled something so quickly she didn’t quite understand it. “Oh! Oh, that’s-- kind of you to offer,” she said, looking down at her phone as it buzzed. An immediate answer, of course. He wasn’t going to be home for a bit, and she had stuff to do. Mina was expecting her back in a bit, as well. “Um, actually, yeah,” she said, pocketing her phone and looking back over at the other boy. He was quite a bit taller than her, even in her heels, and it wasn’t often she met someone who achieved that. She glanced back at Eddie’s door, before turning back to the other boy. “Would you mind giving this to him when he gets back? I would stay, but I have to be somewhere, and, well, I don’t really trust just leaving it on the doorstep, you know? I made it for him myself and I’d really like it if he actually, you know, got it.” She paused. “Not that I think anyone would steal it or anything! Or, well, I guess I sort of do, otherwise I’d be okay leaving it, but I’m more worried about it getting broken.” As nervous as Bex could be, she was used to talking to strangers and asking things of them. At least her parents had taught her one useful thing. 

She made it for him herself? Alfie stood there, dumbfounded for a moment before giving her a small nod. “Yeah, yeah. ‘Course I can!” The hand holding his keys dropped to his side as he shifted towards her, his arm prematurely extended for a swift transfer. In the process, he noticed his shoulders were slouched and straightened up his back a bit — careful not to stand too tall and risk intimidating her. “Trust me, I get it. It’s a sketchy place. There’s no telling what might happen to it before Ed — Eddie gets back. ‘Sides, we wouldn’t want it falling into the wrong hands.” A forced chuckle followed which Alfie immediately regretted. “That… sounds like I’m saying it’s dangerous or something. I just mean, y’know… Things happen around here and, who knows — it’d probably be fine, but better safe than sorry.” His lips pursed together as he studied her face, trying to remember if he’d seen her anywhere; in any pictures Eddie had shown him, or even just from around town. Nothing. Was this just a thing now? Eddie having people over to bring him handmade gifts? “Will he be expecting it, or should I mention who it’s from?” he wondered. He figured that Eddie would be expecting it if she considered leaving it, but he also hoped that putting a name to her face might jog his memory.

“Oh, thank-- I appreciate that!” Bex said, catching herself quickly. It was still such an easy habit to fall into, saying thank you, without knowing what someone was. She thought of all the times she’d said thank you to Professor Campbell and hoped he wasn’t a fae. “Oh, yeah, yes! Better safe than sorry! I mean, this place doesn’t look too sketchy, and when I was over helping him edit some videos the other day, it seemed like a nice place! I think there’s definitely much sketchier places in White Crest,” she rambled. Oh, she was rambling again. She always did that when she was nervous. She smiled to cut herself off and held out the crown for him. “Do you know Eddie well?” she asked, when she noticed the slip in name. If he called him Ed, they were probably good friends, right? Usually people who were close gave each other nicknames. “Uh, no, I don’t think he’s expecting it. I just-- decided to make one and thought of him while I was doing it, so,” the sentence cut short as she shrugged. She wasn’t really sure why she’d made it for him, only that she wanted to do something nice for him, after everything he’d done for her. “You can tell him it’s from Bex,” she tacked on finally, looking back at the other boy with a half smile.

Helping him edit videos? Alfie never helped Eddie edit videos. Granted, that was probably because he never showed any interest in helping him. “Oh, yeah,” Alfie forced another laugh. “He keeps it surprisingly free of dog hair, considering.” He wasn’t sure what to say to that. Hell, he wasn’t even sure how he felt about that. Eddie was allowed to have other friends; it shouldn’t have bothered him. So why did it? “We’re pretty close, yeah.” At this point, Alfie didn’t even know if that was true. No — that was ridiculous. Of course they were close. Eddie was his best friend, after all. 

As soon as the stranger introduced herself, things started making a little more sense. “Oh, Bex! From the — the exorcismyay,” Alfie’s voice dropped to a near whisper when he said “exorcism”. He remembered Eddie mentioning her now; how a filming adventure went awry. As it seemed, these excursions of his were just as dangerous as ever. “I realize now that’s still the same word in Pig Latin,” he tittered, a genuine smile crinkling at the corners of his eyes. The nagging in the pit of his stomach was quickly dissipating. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Bex, and it’s sweet that you wanted Eddie to have this. I’m sure he’ll love it. I’m Alfie, by the way. Alfie Ramirez.” Why did he just tell her his full name? Should he shake her hand now? Was that the right thing to do? Without thinking, Alfie dropped his keys to offer Bex his other hand. “I’d hate to keep you,” he added as an afterthought. “I know you’ve got somewhere to be.”

“Hey, well, Bucket is a queen and she deserves the world. I wouldn’t mind dog hair all over me if it was hers,” Bex chuckled, giving Alfie a better smile this time. He was a nice guy, and, so far, Bex really liked him. Especially if he was friends with Eddie. She didn’t think Eddie would be friends with anyone that wasn’t at least a little like him. “Oh, have you known him long, then? He said he grew up here, and he’s one of those people who seems to love this town. I think it’s cute, don’t you? How much he seems to like this place. It’s...refreshing.” She wasn’t sure why she’d said all that, but she supposed it was the truth, so what did it matter? And if this was Eddie’s friend, then, maybe she wanted to connect with him, too. Maybe she wanted to show Eddie that she had a genuine interest in his life. He made her feel welcome, after all. And safe. She had broken down in front of him and made him see her horrific nightmare and he’d still offered to drive her home and then also be her friend. He deserved a lot more than a bone crown and a date rejection. 

“Oh! Yes! That! That was fun! I was so excited he asked me to come with him. I’ve never seen a ghost before. Or, well, I still technically haven’t, but I’ve seen what they can do! And stuff like that! And it was-- kind of amazing? Did you know there’s different kinds?” She straightened up, laughing a little. “Sorry, I um-- kind of get carried away when i get excited. It’s nice to meet you, Alfie!” she stuck out her hand and took his, watching his keys drop to the ground. “Oh! You’re not keeping me! I mean, I do have someplace to be in a bit, but not right away! Eddie just said he wouldn’t be home for a while--” she shook her phone at him in a gesture of ‘he texted me’ before dropping it, “--so I just don’t have time to wait for him to come back.”

There was a dull throb in Alfie’s chest the moment Bex referred to Eddie as “cute”. For years now, he’d been telling himself not to think like that — and for years, he’d failed. His friend and neighbor would forever be unattainable. It was fine; Alfie accepted that Eddie would only ever be his friend. But that didn’t mean that it wasn’t difficult every now and then. How could he pretend that his feelings were strictly platonic when Eddie’s laugh made his heat soar? Or when he stood there, one hand on his hip, and the other forcing his mess of hair in every which way? Eddie was cute — painfully so — but hearing that someone else thought it too seemed… unfair? Almost. With any luck, Bex said that sort of thing about all of her friends; it couldn’t be exclusive to Eddie, could it? 

“Uh, kind of, yeah,” Alfie croaked. “I’ve known him since high school, but we didn’t talk much.” That was a lie. Sure, they went to school together, but implying that they interacted at all was inaccurate. “That changed when Eddie moved in nextdoor, though. We’ve been friends ever since… The rest is ancient history, and all that jazz.” Alfie knew he needed to stop embellishing the truth. One quick chat with Eddie and Bex would know the truth. Hell, he apparently didn’t make it a point to mention him to her yet. The ache in Alfie’s chest permeated his entire body. His cheeks flushed and his heart raced. He was being ridiculous, he told himself. It shouldn’t matter that Bex didn’t know about him. It shouldn’t matter that Eddie was making new friends. And having them over to his house. Introducing them to Bucket. Watching movies and cuddling on the couch. 

Stop it! His mind screamed at him over the sound of Bex’s voice. What was the last thing she said? “Different kinds?” Alfie parroted, trying to remember the words that came before it. Ghosts, right. His ears were still ringing. She shook his hand and he laughed, returning the gesture long enough to be socially acceptable before withdrawing, completely disregarding his keys on the ground. “No, no — you’re fine! I know a bit about ghosts, but I’ve definitely never had an encounter like that before. It sounds—” terrifying, “— fun!”  For what it was worth, Alfie didn’t exactly want to shoo Bex away, not even when his heart was drumming in his chest. Maybe if he changed the subject? “Ah, that’s understandable,” he agreed. “Have you been here long? In White Crest, I mean — not here, here. I can’t say I’ve ever seen you around.” 

If the other boy was distracted by thoughts, Bex didn’t notice. She was caught up in her own, thinking about Eddie, and how much fun she’d had with him, and what was wrong with her? She had Mina, she had slept with Mina, more than once, and maybe she wanted more than to just be friends with Mina, so why did she keep thinking about what Eddie had said? Why had he asked her out? Why hadn’t she just told him the truth? Everything was so confusing yet so clear right now. She blinked, and readjusted, because Alfie was talking again and she needed to pay attention. Pay attention. “OH, you went to highschool together? That’s cool! I assume you went to the school here? Yeah, I mean, that’s fair. I always feel like people are very different in highschool than after.”

She looked down at his keys on the floor and wondered if he knew. Should she point them out? “Um, you dropped your keys, by the way.” He was being oddly quiet between bouts of words, and she wondered if he was somehow off put by her. She was being awfully nosy, after all. She couldn’t help it. Eddie was still kind of a mystery to her, aside from his ghost stuff. She wanted to know more about him. She’d have to ask him. Maybe bothering his neighbor was a bad idea. “Oh, me? I mean, technically, yes? I was born here. I live-- lived-- out on Harmony Island. I’m in East End now, but I didn’t go to school in town. I went to a private school up in Augusta, so that’s probably why you haven’t seen me around.” Lately, a lot of locals had been saying that to her. Did everyone just know everyone here? She supposed the whole six degrees of separation was more like two degrees in a tiny town like this. “What about you? Did you grow up here? I mean, obviously you went to school here, but, you know, did you move here or were you always here?”

“Yeah, kinda,” Alfie absentmindedly agreed, not bothering to get into the smaller details. In high school, the boys didn’t have much to do with each other. He saw Eddie around campus and onstage in theater productions, but that was about it. Whoever Eddie was in high school, he doubted they would have gotten along back then. 

When Bex mentioned that he’d dropped his keys, Alfie looked almost startled. His eyes shot to his feet where, lo and behold, his keychain limply lied. “Oh, huh, I— yeah, I guess I did,” he grumbled before crouching down and plucking them up. How was he managing to make this much of a fool out of himself? He worried what Bex must have thought of him; more importantly, what Eddie would think if he knew. Would she tell him? ‘Hey, I met your neighbor, Alfie. You know, the one you never mentioned? What a weirdo!’ His thoughts swarmed with what they’d potentially say about him. No doubt laughing as they huddled around Eddie’s computer and bonded over a shared interest. 

“Harmony Island, huh? Sounds fancy.” Alfie chewed nervously on the inside of his cheek as he tried to purge the negative thoughts from his mind. Honestly, he didn’t know much about the island. His reaction was purely based on the fact that it was, well, an island. There were probably a lot of fancy houses there, right? As per the natural progression of conversation, the question was now turned on him. “Yeah, I grew up here,” he answered as he shifted his weight, standing somewhat smaller than he had before. “I’ve never left the greater White Crest area, actually. My family— they, uh… own the library. Or, run it, I guess? It’s probably a lot less cool than it sounds unless you really love books.” Bex probably didn’t care about what his family did for a living, but it was better than hearing how great friends she was with Eddie. “I haven’t worked there in a while, though. I’m actually a software developer. Freelance. I could never work a nine-to-five.”

Bex took a small step back as Alfie bent to pick up his keys. He didn’t seem very talkative, and she wondered if it was because of her. Was she making him uncomfortable? Was it weird that she’d come to Eddie’s place without asking before hand? Was he wary of her? Did he not like her? She shook the thoughts from her head and tried to focus back in on what Alfie was saying. “Oh, uh, yeah! My family is actually kind of uh, well known around town,” she said, rubbing the back of her head before hands came together to wring each other out. She looked back over her shoulder, as if maybe she would turn and see Eddie coming down the hallway, but there was nothing. “My parents are pretty well off.” But I don’t speak to them much anymore. Or at all. She shivered at the thought. 

“You’re-- family owns the library? The public one? Do-- do you have a sister? I think I might’ve talked to her online! Is her name Leah?” She was somehow grateful for the change of subject, perking back up for a moment. IF she could make friends with Eddie’s friends, then that was only a good thing, right? That had to be a good thing. “Software developer? Woah, that’s so cool! How’d you learn to do that? Did you teach yourself or did you go to school for it? Either way, that’s, like, super impressive.”

Alfie gave a series of small nods as Bex talked about her own family. He wondered if he should know who they were, but thought better of it. He was still a stranger, after all. They knew each other's names and that they shared a mutual friend. That was it. Alfie was never any good at making friends. Sure, there was also Nell, but their friendship started out of sheer luck — and family ties. Small talk was also not within Alfie’s usual realm of comfort. He hated it, in fact. That’s probably why he didn’t have many friends. That and the fact that that he never felt he needed any. Maybe, with any luck, he’d manage to befriend Bex too. “That makes sense; with private school and everything,” he agreed. 

A light laugh surfaced from the depths of his chest. “Yeah, that’s the one,” Alfie confirmed after clearing his throat. “Leah, yeah. She’s, uh— she’s great, really.” He never knew what to say when it came to his family. His parents were strict when he was growing up. They still were, actually. Not that he had much to do with them these days. Leah was — beyond a shadow of a doubt — the golden child. Compared to her and their other siblings, Alfie was the black sheep. That wasn’t the sort of information people usually offered to someone they just met. Instead, Alfie kept quiet; at least until Bex showed an interest in his job. All of a sudden, his face lit up. It was cool! “I’m mostly self-taught, actually! I mean, I took some classes for it in high school, but that’s about it. It’s just always been something I’ve enjoyed doing — fiddling around with computers and whatnot.” Alfie grinned sheepishly at Bex. As much as he enjoyed talking about it, he didn’t want to bore her. “What about you, though? Do you work, or…?” 

“She is! She was super nice and agreed to let me borrow some books! Which...it’s a library so of course she did, but I mean, like--” Bex lowered her voice a bit and leaned in, “--special books, if you catch my drift.” Supernatural books. Magic books. She smiled again as she leaned back and gave a short chuckle. “Sorry. I just get really excited about books, and when I actually happen to know people. I don't know too many people around town, so it’s nice knowing this place is actually smaller than it seems, you know? Like, who woulda thought that Eddie’s neighbor, who I met coincidentally, was related to the nice librarian lady I talked to online, who also knows my mo-- er, my current guardian, and is friends with her! Isn’t that wild?” She tried to recuperate fast enough to hope Alfie hadn’t caught her stumble. Not that he knew about her situation, but the slip had even her surprised. Morgan wasn’t her mom. Morgan probably didn’t want the responsibility of that, either. Plus, Bex was an adult, mostly. She didn’t need someone to be that for her. She was doing fine, really.

“But, oh, wow! That’s so cool! And so impressive that you learned most of it all on your own! Do you make a lot of money doing it? What kinds of things do you design? I mean, software, obviously, but is it like, firewalls, programs, mods? There’s so much. Me? Oh, well-- I used to intern at my parents’ law firm, but I, uh-- have recently had a change of heart for what I wanna major in. So, currently jobless, just uh, focusing on school! And, well-- I guess ghost hunting, now. Does that count as a job if I’m not getting paid? It feels like more than a hobby, though, you know?”

“Special books — right, totally getcha. Like, say… her personal copy of ‘Interview with the Vampire’,” Alfie nodded. It wasn’t surprising that someone jumping into the ghost hunting scene would be interested in perusing the restricted section of the library. On the contrary, Leah wasn’t known to lend out books (as far as Alfie was aware) and he couldn’t help but wonder if there was more to it than just Bex’s excursions with Eddie. “Sorry, that was lame. But, yes, I caught your drift.” As Bex apologized, Alfie shook his head with a gentle smile. He was no stranger to talking a bit more than he should about things that made him excited. The library might not have been one of his go-to hangouts these days, but if Bex wanted to gush over it, he’d be happy to listen. “No need to apologize! And actually — now that you mention it — White Crest may be a relatively small town, but you’d be surprised how many people I don’t know. I guess it is pretty cool to realize who knows who and whatnot.”

The broad grin never wavered from Alfie’s face. It was easy to push aside his reservations towards Bex when his craft was in question. He was very quickly warming up to this new acquaintance. “A handful of different things, actually! I’ve cast a pretty wide net. I’ve recently been really into programming a personal database. It’s, uh… a work in progress.” Maybe he shouldn’t have said that. In the event that it got back to Leah, his sister might start asking questions that Alfie wasn’t prepared to answer. “But, yeah. You pretty much hit the nail on the head with all of those. The pay’s decent enough, though I haven’t had any big projects lately — takes care of the bills at least.” Did it matter that some of these projects were morally questionable? Alfie was merely the brains behind them; what the clients used them for were out of his control. He objected not to voice this, considering her parents were in law. “Hey, take it from someone who didn’t go to college: you’re allowed to change your mind about that sort of thing. ‘Specially since you’re the one earning the degree. Have you picked a new major, or…? If you don’t mind me asking, that is.”

“Yeah, but less Interview With A Vampire and more--” Bex started, then stopped. She’d been reminded time and time again that telling people she didn’t know that she was a spellcaster was a bad idea. But Alfie was friends with Eddie and he was Leah’s little brother, so he could be trusted, right? She wanted to trust him. “More, Practical Magic.” Oh, that was a blatant reference, wasn’t it? Well, no hiding it now, she supposed. She gave him a sheepish smile and waved it off. “Not lame! Definitely not lame. If it was lame then so was mine.” She chuckled lightly, hoping to move past the notion quickly, nodding eagerly when he amended his statement about White Crest. “Yeah, totally! I’ve definitely noticed that. I mean, I grew up kinda closed off, so I never really knew people around town, but once I started actually meeting people, it was like everyone knew everyone! Or knew of them, at least. Wild, huh? Six degrees of separation who?” Oh, now she was just embarrassing herself. She cleared her throat. “It’s just interesting to see. When I moved away to Penn State briefly, it was so different. Everything was so impersonal.” She’d sort of liked that, though, blending in easily. The dream of that life was so long gone,though.

“Woah, you’re making a whole database all from scratch?? That’s incredible!” Bex exclaimed, perhaps a little too loudly, but she couldn’t help it-- people being excited made her excited and her cheeks bubbled with it. She needed to find every reason to be excited, anyway. Every reason to be happy. “But, you know, pays the bills is good! Especially if it’s something you enjoy! Isn’t that what they say? Find something you love and you’ll never work a day in your life?” She remembered one of her professors telling her that. She didn’t know if it was true. “Oh! Uh, yeah, I have. Um-- Anthropology. I’ll probably focus on uh, Archaeology. It’s what interests me the most. But, really, anything about history interests me. I could probably go to school for the rest of my life getting different history degrees. I won’t, though! But I could.” She rubbed the back of her head. “I’m what they call a History nerd. Or buff. History buff. Anything you wanna know about history, I probably know something about!”

Practical magic? That came as a surprise. The only spellcasters Alfie knew in White Crest were the Vurals. He always figured there were more, but never bothered to find out for himself. A wave of anxiety crashed over him at the thought of Bex having something to do with his curse; a worry that quickly subsided at the realization that no beginner magic-user could be involved in a plot spanning across what was likely centuries. Unless… 

“Not lame,” Alfie reiterated with a meek smile. “Although, I can’t exactly say I’ve read it myself.” He wondered if it would be appropriate to ask her more about it — if only to subdue his concern. Maybe it was best to leave it be for the time being. 

It was interesting to hear about Bex’s fondness for White Crest. The reasons she seemed to adore the small town were on Alfie’s list of why he wanted to leave it. “That sounds ideal to me,” he said playfully, electing not to elaborate. Explaining that he longed for a bigger city where he could easily hide away would only dampen the mood. Not to mention that it could potentially get back to Eddie who would undoubtedly be upset by it. If anyone could make Alfie stay, it would be him — another thing on his ever-growing list that Alfie wasn’t prepared to get into with Bex. 

“More or less,” he chuckled. “The original code is pretty much public domain, but I’ve made my own enhancements.” These ‘enhancements’ being private journals that he so eagerly nicked from the family’s secret collection, though that was neither here nor there. He’d return them… eventually. “I mean, that’s awesome, though! There’s still so much to discover through artifacts from the past.” In a sense, Alfie was doing the same; unearthing his own past through vague remnants of it. “Good on you for chasing your dreams.”

Alfie thoughtfully pursed his lips. He wondered if Bex had anything in her bank of knowledge pertaining to his own circumstances. “Actually, now that you mention it… You don’t happen to have any recommendations on, say, the history of White Crest, do you? More specifically pre-dating European colonization?” It was a long shot, but he couldn’t exactly ask Leah. 

“Oh!” Bex perked a bit, “it’s actually a really good book! If you like reading about that kinda stuff, I’d totally suggest it.” She beamed for a moment. She loved talking about books and sharing other people’s interests and, well, it was always nice when people shared hers, too, wasn’t it? She wondered if Alfie knew about all the things that went on in the shadows of White Crest, all the things the world tried to hide from people-- probably, considering he was friends with Eddie, and Eddie didn’t seem like the kinda guy to hoard that type of information. In fact, he was the opposite. She shook the thoughts away.

“What? Oh! Yeah,” she blinked back to the present moment and away from her thoughts and nodded. “I don’t mind living in a small town. I know it’s not everyone’s thing, but I dunno-- it’s not so bad, for me.” It was harder to disappear, but maybe that wasn’t what she wanted anymore. Maybe she did want to be known, after being hidden for so long.

“Enhancements? Well, I mean, still! That’s amazing. I’m sure you made it infinitely better. And, well, yeah, thanks! I just kinda figured, what’s the point of life if you’re just living someone else’s, you know?” She gave pause at his last question. She did, in fact, have recommendations on all that. But they were Morgan’s family notebooks and the ones she’d dug up at the record hall and “borrowed” permanently. No one knew they were missing, not when she’d replaced them with fakes. She chewed her lip. “Uh, I mean, you could check town hall, if you wanted to. They might have some old newspapers or records that could tell you about that stuff. Does your family not have any books on that stuff in the library?” And little did she know, her own parents had records of that time. They’d been in White Crest longer than the town had a name, after all. She shrugged. “Sorry I can’t be more help there.” Her phone buzzed and she glanced down at it. “Oh, uh-- I-- I should probably get going, actually. I-- thanks again, you know, for talking to me and for holding onto that for Eddie for me.”

“I’m not exactly, uh — how do I put this? — affluent in that sort of thing, if I’m being honest,” Alfie chuckled. The hand holding his keys darted behind him to rub the back of his neck. Growing up, Nell tried her best to explain it to him, but the only thing Alfie could relate it to was his lessons on temperature control — and his innate ability to burst into flame. Aside from that, magic simply didn’t make sense to him. He always assumed it was something some were simply born with. These new-age witches and wiccans most likely accomplished nothing more than what any ordinary human was already capable of. Then again, what did he know? He figured it would be impolite to ask Bex whether or not she had any real powers. It wasn’t his business. 

Alfie nodded along as Bex spoke, failing to come up with anything valuable to add. Living in White Crest was a curse (at least for him), but he didn’t expect others to share that opinion. He wasn’t sure how far back his history with premature death went. All Alfie knew for certain was that the records he did have access to were set in the unusual town; none of which explained the source for his self-proclaimed “curse”. What he needed to find was something with the answer in bold print — a pissed off spellcaster rebuking one phoenix in particular. Or perhaps an astrological phenomenon occurring around the time of his birth or death. Not that Alfie knew the precise dates. 

“Yeah, I mean, the library definitely has some stuff,” he said sheepishly. “But, uh, thanks. I’ll have to give town hall a shot.” At that moment, Bex’s phone buzzed. Alfie hadn’t noticed the tension in his shoulders until then. “Oh, of course! Sorry, I didn’t mean to keep you.” He felt a little guilty for being relieved that Bex was leaving. He hated small talk. “It was great to finally meet you, Bex. I’ll make sure Eddie gets it as soon as he’s home. And, uh… be safe out there.”

[sexy-monster-fucker]

Selfish

Eddie Brock/Venom x Reader ANGST

requested by anon:  imagine a scenario where Eddie and reader (they’re dating) get into a fight or argument but VENOM doesn’t give a shit about the fight and misses his morsel and is bothering Eddie to talk to him/her to makeup... maybe some angsty sexy longing in there, maybe Venom takes the drivers seat to be with his morsel because the fighting is trivial human shit he could care less for... 💕

requested by anon:  Do you do angsty stuff? Like maybe Eddie and reader get into a bad fight and break up and neither one of them stop to think how Venom feels.

requested by anon:  Howdy, just wanted to say I love your blog! Also I appreciate a good angsty fic, you're definitely not alone. Hope you had a good Halloween!

“Don’t pretend like this is okay,” Eddie slammed the door behind him...

You had just got back from your monthly office party.  Your boss thought it was good bonding for everyone to get together once a month.  You found it repetitive and ridiculous.  Tonight had been different though.  Eddie came for the first time ever, but things at the party were different.  One of your coworkers had shown up wasted, “An embarrassment to the company,” you had thought.  He was stumbling around, grabbing every girl in sight.  He just happened to come up to you and attempt to grope you.  He grabbed a handful of you from behind, causing you to jump.  “N-Nice ass,” he burped out.  “What the fuck,” Eddie raised his voice.  “Wh-What’s your pro-problem, dude?  She’s just some chick, don’t take it so personal,” he pointed in Eddie’s face.  Eddie gritted his teeth, “She’s my girlfriend.  And I suggest you step away from her.”  You grabbed Eddie’s hand, “C’mon, Eds.  He isn’t worth it.”  Your co-worker pushed Eddie back, “Oh yeah?  What are you gonna do-do about it, b-bub?”  Eddie’s eyes went white; Venom was trying to take over.  You grabbed Eddie and pulled him back, “Ed!  No!”  He turned to see you scared.  He knew he needn’t handle things the way he wanted.  He gave his attention back to your co-worker, “You got lucky this time, but it you ever try something like that with my lady again, you’ll pay.”  You and Eddie began walking away when your co-worker began laughing, “What a pussy.  His girlfriend convinced him he shouldn’t fight?  Nah, he’s just scared-scared he’d loose.”  Eddie stiffened up.  You placed a hand on his bicep, “Eddie, he’s drunk.  Don’t.”  Eddie pulled away from your grasp and walked over to him.  Eddie lifted him off he ground by his collar with one hand.  Venom’s growl escaped Eddie mouth, “I won’t warn you again, insect.”  You pulled Eddie away and your co-worker hit the ground.  “Wh-what the hell has that guy been eating,” he muttered under his breath.  Everyone in the room stared at you and Eddie.  Eddie looked angry.  You were embarrassed.  You ran out, Eddie chased behind you.

...You held yourself tightly.  Eddie had embarrassed you in front of your co-workers.  You knew he was just protecting you, but he did not have to take it so far.  “You’re really going to act like that guy didn’t make a pass at you,” Eddie yelled in anger.  “Please stop yelling,” you whispered.  Eddie blew his breath out.  “Oh?  Is that how it is?  Just normal?  You’re not even upset,” Eddie’s voice cracked.  You placed your hand over your mouth.  “Whatever,” Eddie scoffed, “Just pretend like it didn’t happen.  I wouldn’t expect you to be upset anyway.  You never are unless I am the one who messed up.”  You turned and felt warm tears falling from your eyes.  You had a lump in your throat, “OF COURSE I AM UPSET, EDDIE!”  Eddie’s expression changed quickly when you raised your voice.  “I can’t keep doing this, Ed.  You know it upset me!  But you didn’t have top flip out so immaturely!  No woman wants to be groped by some drunk guy!  I could loose my job over how you acted!  You embarrassed me!”  Eddie was silent.  He stared at you while you cried.  He did not know what do to.  He was still so angry, but he knew he had hurt you.  “I-I’m sorry, Y/N,” Eddie whispered.  You were frustrated, “YOU ALWAYS ARE!  Maybe if you’d think for five seconds before acting you wouldn’t have to be sorry all the time!”  You could feel your heartbeat in your ears.  You were beyond angry.  Eddie stood in front of you, a frown painted on his face.  “I’m leaving, Eddie.  We need some time apart,” you stated walking past him.  Eddie went to grab you and you pulled away, “No, Eddie.  We can’t keep fighting all the time.  I need a break.”  You walked out.  

Eddie began crying.  “Oh my God, what have I done,” he held his face in his hands.  Venom appeared next to Eddie.  He was confused.  Not completely understanding where you had went and why you had left.  “Ed, what happened?  Where did our princess go,” Venom questioned.  Eddie leaned against the door, slowly sliding down it until he sat on the floor.  “She broke up with me,” Eddie whispered.  Venom did not understand, “What does that even mean?”  Eddie blew his breath out, “She decided she did not want to be my partner anymore, V.  She is no longer a part of our life.  And it’s all my fault.”  Venom snarled.  He was angry that Eddie had made such a foolish mistake.  “What’s wrong with you?  Why would you do that,” Venom hissed at Eddie.  “Listen, Venom.  These kinds of things happen.  People break up.  Trust me, this hurts me a hell of a lot more than it hurts you,” Eddie was cold in his words.  Venom growled at Eddie, “You are going to get her back!”  Eddie rolled his eyes, “Don’t be an idiot.”  Venom pulled Eddie up to his feet.  He made Eddie’s hand grip the doorknob.  “NO,” Eddie argued.  “YOU!  ARE!  GOING,” Venom demanded, causing Eddie to open the door.  Eddie was angry, yet relieved.

You stood outside in the cold.  You were waiting on a cab.  You heard someone approaching you from behind.  You knew it was Eddie, “Listen, Ed, I’m not-”  It wasn’t him.  It was simply another attendee at the apartment.  The man gave you an odd look because you had spoken to him.  He continued on across the road.   You were disappointed it hadn’t been Eddie.  You would not admit it, but you wanted Eddie to come chasing after you.  It was childish and immature.  You should have just worked things out like adults.  

“I can’t, Venom,” Eddie argued with the beast.  Venom was getting desperate and threw Eddie out into the hallway.  Eddie slammed into the wall, falling.  Eddie groaned in pain while he tried to force himself back up.  “She is going to be gone soon,” Venom panted.  Eddie rose, “I don’t see why it matters so much to you.”  Venom’s tone changed, “I love her, Eds.  She means the world to me.  I feel so attached to her.  She can’t just leave us.  I want her back, Eddie.  And you did not even put up a fight when she tried to leave.  I can’t go get her on my own.  Eddie, please.”  He was sincere.  For once, the monster had human emotions.  Eddie could feel how real his feelings were and he began to feel them too.  Eddie had been fighting his feelings for months.  He continued to push them and you away out of fear of him not being good enough.  He knew he loved you.  Loved you more than he had ever loved anyone.  He had no idea how to tell you.  He was scared it would scare you.  Scared it would seem too soon in your eyes.  “I’m sorry, V.  I didn’t even think about how this would affect you,” Eddie apologized.  “Edster,” Venom began, “You can make it up to me by getting that girl.”  Eddie smiled at Venom.  Eddie began to rush down the stairs.  

You began to shiver.  It was getting colder and there was no cab in sight.  You heard another set of steps begin behind you.  You turned to see Eddie rushing towards you.  You could not help but smile, “Eddie!”  He smiled when he saw you, “I came down here to tell you how sorry I am.  You have no idea how much you mean to me.  Seeing that guy all over you just set me off.  I am so so sorry.  You mean the entire world to me.”  You shook your head, “It’s okay, Eddie.  I was being dramatic leaving like that.”  Eddie pulled you into his embrace, “I love you, Y/N.”  You froze.  “Did you just say you loved me,” you whispered.  Eddie nodded.  You felt your cheeks turn pink, “I love you too.”  Eddie giggled and picked you up.  He spun you around and placed a kiss on your lips.  

“Let’s go back to my place, you have to be freezing,” Eddie took your hand in his.  You smiled and walked back to Eddie’s apartment with him.

~~~

End

~~

[Tags]

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\ If you no longer want to be tagged in my Venom x Reader Fics, please do let me know. Or if you would like to be tagged in future posts, let me know! //

[marveloussupernerd]

Adults can Trick or Treat Too! - Seven

Howdy if you were unaware every night until Halloween I’m writing for a different mysme character using a randomly generated prompt :)

Warnings: spoilers for Seven’s real name!

Prompts: trick or treating as adults, sharing candy

Summary: Saeran has never gone trick-or-treating. It’s up to you and Seven to show him what he’s missed out on and make this his best Halloween ever

It was something you knew without ever having to confirm it: Saeran had never gone trick-or-treating, and had never properly celebrated Halloween at that. When Seven had gone off to college he made a strong effort to go to Halloween parties and soak in the spirit of the holiday, but Saeran had never gotten that chance.

So OBVIOUSLY you had to make sure this year Saeran had the best Halloween ever. And that started with group costumes.

That’s why you were curling your hair, putting on dramatic false eyelashes and bright pink lipstick, and wearing a bright pink, poofy dress that ended slightly below the knee. Saeyoung had wanted you to get the “hooker Princess Peach costume” as he called it, that was way too short and paired with thigh highs. But this wasn’t his night: it was Saeran’s. And you certainly didn’t want to scar the boy for life. You worked on bobby-pinning the crown so that it wouldn’t fall off your head, then pulled on your long white gloves. You were all ready.

You left the bathroom and moseyed on over to the living room. Saeyoung had asked you to start living with you and Saeran once you had gotten engaged. Saeran was truly a part of the family and was treated like one; you really worked on convincing him that he was welcome to live with the two of you for as long as he wanted... as long as he didn’t mind any unholy sounds coming from you and Saeyoung’s room at night.

Saeyoung and Saeran were sitting on the couch waiting for you, Saeran’s eyes trained on his game and Saeyoung adjusting his hat. “You two look so cute!” You squealed. The two boys jumped from their seated position upon hearing your voice. They were in matching overalls, sweaters, and hats, Saeyoung in red and Saeran in green. Saeyoung had even put a fake mustache on. It seemed Saeran refused, and was justified in doing so.

“You look nice too!” Saeyoung complimented, walking up to you and resting his hands on your hips. “You went more conservative than I hoped, but you know what? The character integrity is much better than the other costumes’.”

You rolled your eyes, patting his mustache to feel the fabric. It felt kinda like felt and honestly not very appealing. “I hate it,” you confessed, giggling. “Saeran had the right idea.” Saeran’s eyes snapped up at you and you could swear you saw him smile.

Saeyoung pursed his lips at you, trying to kiss your lips. You absolutely refused. No way in hell, not with that weird mustache. You squirmed out of his grip and hid behind Saeran, who seemed very unphased.

“I’ll kiss you by the end of the night,” he threatened. “In fact, you’ll be begging for it.”

“Ew. Please don’t,” Saeran piped in. “Don’t we have to get going anyway?”

“Yes! You’re absolutely right.” You made your way to the front door and the boys followed. You pulled out three fabric bags and handed one to each brother. “Here are your candy bags.”

Saeran opened the bag and glanced inside. “I’m gonna get this much candy?”

“Depends on how dedicated you are and how many houses you wanna visit,” you shrugged.

The three of you made your way outside and were met with a lot of the neighborhood kids, dressed up in costumes and running around with their parents. “I didn’t realize there were so many families in the neighborhood,” you commented, taking it all in. Saeran seemed shocked as well.

“Me neither. Guess we all don’t get out enough,” Saeyoung laughed.

You were pretty friendly with your nextdoor neighbors. Saeyoung had never talked to them before you were around, but once you moved in you all started to talk a lot more, having campfires every once in a while. They were a few years older than you three, but very cool. You knew they’d be happy to see your costumes.

You knocked on the door. “Alright Saeran, when they open up we say ‘trick or treat’ and then you hold your bag open and then candy. Easy enough?” You explained, giving him a quick reminder. Of course he had already known this, but you wanted to make sure he wouldn’t get nervous in the heat of the moment.

The door opened. You all sang a chorus of “trick or treat,” Saeyoung being especially enthusiastic and loud.

“Aw you guys look so cute!” The girl exclaimed. She called her husband over and he awed over your costumes as well.

“Makes me miss trick-or-treating. We should go next year,” he said.

“You can come with us!” Saeyoung exclaimed, wrapping an arm around you and one around Saeran. They gave you your candy and you were on your way to the next house.

Most houses were pretty chill, but you did run into a few Karen’s who asked if you were too old to be out. The responses varied from person-to-person. Saeyoung usually just responded with a “nope!” and talked about how it was Saeran’s first time trick-or-treating. Saeran would just glare until the people gave him candy. He could definitely be scary when he wanted to. You would offer to stop trick-or-treating and egg their house instead. All the tactics worked equally as well.

You all didn’t make it very long. You hadn’t even made it around the block before you were all wiped out, turning around to go home. You wrapped an arm around Saeyoung’s shoulder so he was half-carrying you home. “I don’t remember this being so tiring,” you complained.

“I think it’s because we got too excited beforehand. So Saeran? Did you have fun?”

He shrugged. “It was fine.”

“Wait til you get to eat the candy. That’s the best part.” Saeyoung opened the door to the house and you all followed inside, plopping down on the carpet.

“I’m not big on candy actually,” Saeran confessed, looking away awkwardly.

“No way! We’ll find something you like.” You were determined all of a sudden, taking everyone’s bags and pouring them upside-down to reveal the candy. “You like fruity or chocolate?”

He shrugged again. “Never had much candy.”

“You did like mint chocolate chip ice cream though, remember?” Saeyoung asked gently, trying to jog his brother’s memory.

Saeran’s eyes lit up and he nodded. “Guess so.”

“Okay.” You slid a Milky Way over to him. “Try this.”

He tore open the wrapper, taking a bite and shrugging. “It’s okay.”

“Not good enough,” Saeyoung shook his head. “I’ll take these then.” He sorted through and put the Milky Ways in his pile.

“Okay. How about this?” You passed him a Resse cup. A classic. You looked to him expectantly.

“Just fine again.” He crumpled up the wrapper in his hand. “I just want plain chocolate. Is there no plain chocolate?”

Your eyes lit up. You were so excited by your epiphany that you didn’t even scold Saeyoung for taking all the Reese’s. “Hershey’s.” You gave Saeran the bar. “Just plain milk chocolate.”

He broke off a piece and took a bite. You saw a smile forming as his lips quirked upwards. “That’s the one,” he decided, unable to prevent the grin from forming on his face.

“You get all the Hershey’s then.” You pushed through the candy to hone in on the chocolate bars, putting them in a neat little line in front of him. “Sound good?” You asked as you finished.

“Sounds good. I’m gonna take these all to my room and go to bed. I’m wiped out.” He loaded the chocolate back into his bag and stood up. “...Thanks. I had a lot of fun actually.” He confessed to you and Saeyoung. Bursting with pride, you both wished him good night.

“You made him really happy. Thank you.” Saeyoung grinned, laying down to rest his head in your lap.

“I couldn’t have done it without you.” You took his hat off his head, running your fingers through his hair. “We make a good team, the three of us.”

“You don’t know how happy it makes me feel to hear that. I’d kiss you, but... I’ve still got this mustache on my face.” He sighed dramatically.

“Oh well. That sucks,” you shrugged. You were not going to give in.

“Please?” He begged, a dark look in his eyes. He bit his lip very slowly, trying to seduce you?

“I’m not going to be seduced by Mario, Saeyoung,” you giggled, leaning back against the couch while you laughed.

“Awwww... rude. I knew I should’ve dressed up as hooker Mario,” he pouted. He sat up in your lap, lips agonizingly close to your own.

You caught your breath quickly, eager to focus on anything but his close proximity to you and his touch, oh the way he was holding onto your hips. “That’s a thing?” You asked, your voice breathy. He quirked an eyebrow as he noticed the inflection in your voice.

“Just give in. It’ll be so much easier... and way more fun for the both of us.” He was biting his lip again. Despite it being pretty hot, it made you laugh at how hard he was trying.

Without hesitation, you reached forward and ripped the mustache off him, dropping it on the ground. He yelped in pain and pouted. You kissed his pouty lips.

“You’re no fun,” he whined. He let go of you and stood up from his spot. “I’m going to bed.”

You jumped up to follow him. “Noooo, please don’t!” You wrapped your arms around him from behind, locking him in place.

“Told you I’d have you begging.”

[russianredassassin]

Huntress x Reader - Getting Over a Cheating Ex

This was requested by Anonymous - howdy, can I request Helena helping reader get over a cheating ex and then they fall in love and get together? can this be a full fic? thanks!! I hope you enjoy this whoever requesting it and it was what you wanted :) Also, sorry about any grammar or spelling errors im too tired to edit again  

Warnings - One swear word as I have written boy/girl-friend so you can read it as either since the request didn't specify which gender and I didn't want to assume. 

Word Count - 1204 

Requested - Yes 

I was currently standing outside the apartment of my friend Helena Bertinelli, just trying to hold it together. After everything that has happened I just needed someone. I gently knocked on the door, not wanting to disturb her. But got no answer. I tried again and waiting, still with no reply. So I just started walking away, deciding that it wasn't worth bothering her. But when I got outside, I was stopped with the sound of a motorbike coming to a halt and when I turned around there she was. Helena Bertinelli as Huntress

“Y/N, you ok?” Helena said taking off her bike helmet and getting off the bike. I just looked at her trying to hold it together, keeping the tears back. 

“I...I just wanted to talk to you” I said trying to fight my tears “But I’ll go if your busy” I then turned around to quickly leave but I was stopped in my tracks by my and turned round to face Helena. That was when I just fell apart and collapsed in her arms, tears now falling from my eyes. Helena immediately wrapped her arms around me and guided me inside in the apartment. 

“Y/N, what's wrong” Helena said as we imminently went into the living room to sit down

“I...I got home from work early, wanting to surprise my boy/girl-friend but when I got home they...” I couldn't even say it as I fell into Helena’s neck crying. Helena was naturally unsure what to do at first so she just slowly patted me on my head. Helena didn't say anything at first. Seemingly like she just waited for me to speak in my own time. Something I loved about her, she was always thinking about my feelings. “they were in bed with someone else” Helena lifted my head off her shoulders and grabbed my cheeks with her hands with urgency, but not hurting. 

“What?” Helena said with wide eyes, clearly shocked by what I just told her

“They cheated on me” I said looking into her eyes while crying. I could see Helena getting angry, but not saying anything. Probably again unsure with what to say. “I can’t say I blame them thought” 

“What?” Helena said guiding my face to look at hers

“I mean look at me” I said pointing to my body “Who would want to be with me?”

“Y/N!”  Helena said “A lot of people would want to be with you...” 

“Oh please!” I shouted as I jumped up in anger “They cheated on me, they obviously did it for a reason and that reason is...” 

“Because they are an arsehole, because they clearly didn't know how good of a person they had in you and now that's their loss” Helena said cutting me off then guiding me back to the couch “Y/N you are smart, funny, kind, and beautiful” I was now looking at Helena with tears in my eyes but also with a smile on my face because of what she just said

“Do you mean all those things?”  I said 

“I wouldn't have said it if it wasn't true” Helena said pulling me into a hug “Anytime you need me I’ll be here for you, and if you want I could just kill them for you” Helena smiled which caused us to both laugh 

About a week or two had passed and couldn't stop thinking about what Helena said about me. She has been very helpful. She was the first person I told about being cheated on, and she’s always there when I wanted to cry, scream, moan, hit something or help with my self conscious thoughts. I knew it was tough on her but she never made even the slightest fuss over it and I loved her for it. And I meant that both metaphorically and literally. Because you see, I was starting to realise I was falling in love with her. Mainly because of what she said about how beautiful and smart I was and so I started to notice little things she did that I found so cute such as when she got slightly awkward when you were just hanging out, the cute smile she did when you did something embarrassing or just her smile and laugh when you made a joke.

We were currently hanging out in Helena’s apartment watching a comedy that Helena picked out. Cuddling up next to her was both the best and worst feeling in the world. I was suddenly aware of how I looked, and I was incredibly nervous so I started sweating. I could feel my heart beating a thousand beats a second. Then Helena suddenly laughed at a part from the movie and I looked up at her and couldn't contain myself any longer

“You ok Y/N?” Helena asked while smiling at me.

“I love you” I suddenly blurted out. For about a minute neither me nor Helena said anything “ I’m sorry Helena I didn't I...I mean I...” 

“What?” Helena said quietly while looking directly into my eyes, I released I breath I didn't know I was holding then I spoke up 

“I’m in love with Helena”  I said, while also looking directly into Helena’s eyes “Over these past few months you have been supporting me though what I thought was the worst time of my life and over that time I have fallen completely in love with you, everything about you, Your smile and laugh, and your ability to kick anyone's ass”  You said bringing out a little laugh from Helena from the last part. Helena just kept starting at me “Helena?” 

“Why didn't you say anything before?” Helena said, all attention on you. 

“I was scared” I said tears welling up in my eyes “I was scared you wouldn't feel the same way and you would hate me, so I completely understand if you want to leave or if you never want to see me ag...” Suddenly I felt a pair lips on mine and realised it was Helena’s. Even though it only lasted a second or two, I felt like it lasted an eternity, And I was perfect. But all good thing must come to an end. Helena leaned away from me now looking ever more awkward and looking away from me.

“I'm sorry I...I shouldn't have...” Helena said, obviously feeling awkward about what she just did.

“No, no, no” I said, secretly wanting that feeling of Helena’ s lips on mine again “I liked it, it was just a shock that's all” Helena was now blushing, as was I “Would you like to go on a date sometime” I said amidst all the blushing and Helena just smiled and nodded with cute enthusiasm.  

“Can I...can I kiss you again” Helena stammering out “If its ok of course” I just simply nodded with a big smile on my face. We leaned in, closing our eyes and finally kissed. And it was perfect.  

[queen-of-deans-booty]

Swan Song: Part Three

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Word Count: 2,256

Warnings: typical supernatural violence, language, angst, blood, you know the usual

Author’s Note: I do not own anything from Supernatural. All credit goes to their respective owners. Any and all comments on these are appreciated. I really want to hear what you guys think about this one!

Feedback is the glue that holds my writing together.

Tags at the bottom

Dean’s not Dean if he doesn’t make an entrance. You know Michael and Lucifer are already at the cemetery, and to make sure they know you’re coming, he revs his engine and turns up his music. Both archangels are standing a few feet apart as Dean drives up to them. He stops about ten feet away from them and turns off the car.

“Are you ready?” you ask and look at him.

“No,” he sighs but gets out of the car anyways. You get out on your end, and Lucifer grows angry. However, neither angel attacks just yet. “Howdy, boys. Sorry. Are we interrupting something?”

“We need to talk,” you say as you look at Lucifer.

“Y/N, Dean, even for you two, this is a whole new mountain of stupid,” Lucifer smirks.

“We’re not talking to you,” Dean says and advances a few steps. You do the same. “We’re talking to Sam.”

“You're no longer the vessel, Dean. Amara has no business with this fight. You two got no right to be here,” Michael announces.

“Adam, if you're in there somewhere, I am so sorry,” Dean sighs.

“Adam isn’t home right now.”

“Well, then you're next on our list, buttercup,” you give him a bittersweet smile. “But right now, we need five minutes with him.”

“You little maggot. You two are no longer a part of this story!” Michael shouts and starts to advance towards you two.

Your eyes start to glow blue in case you need to use your magic to defend yourself, but Castiel’s voice comes out of nowhere.

“Hey, ass-butt!”

Castiel is standing with your dad, and he has a Molotov in his hands. You assume that it’s doused with holy fire if he’s going to use it on Michael. Without giving his older brother a chance to speak, he throws the concoction at him. Michael bursts into flames, and he screams loudly to match his pain level. He burns up until he’s completely gone. You’re glad he did that, but Lucifer just looks pissed.

“Ass-butt?” Dean asks, and Castiel just shrugs.

“He'll be back—and upset—but you got your five minutes.”

“Castiel. Did you just Molotov my brother with holy fire?” Lucifer glares.

“Uh,” Castiel looks very nervous since Lucifer can do some real damage to him, “no.”

“No one dicks with Michael but me,” Lucifer growls.

Lucifer has no need for his much younger brother, and he raises his right hand and snaps. Castiel explodes in a rain of blood and chunks of meat. You scream, and your first instinct is to go to him, but Dean stops you. He’s already dead, and there isn’t anything you can do. Your dad just looks terrified, and there is no way he can go up against Lucifer alone.

“Sammy, can you hear me?” Dean asks hopefully.

“You know, I tried to be nice for Sammy's sake. But you two,” he walks closer to you and Dean, “are such pains,” he grips yours and Dean’s collars in his hands, “in my ass.”

He throws you two into the windshield of Dean’s car, and it cracks under your weight. Even though you’re not that far from it, the force Lucifer gave is enough to almost break it. He advances towards you two, but your dad does something incredibly stupid. He shoots Lucifer in the back. The archangel turns to look at him, and he shoots him again in the chest.

“No,” you whisper and sit up.

You look between Lucifer and your dad. If what he did to Castiel might happen to your dad, you don’t know what you’ll do. Your dad looks at you and just shrugs since he didn’t know what else to do. He wasn’t going to just stand there and watch Lucifer beat you two up. The archangel doesn’t move except to raise his right hand.

“No!” you yell this time. He flicks his wrist, and your dad’s neck snaps. “NO!”

“Yes,” Lucifer grins, and turns back towards you.

Your dad drops to the ground, and seeing his dead weight gives you all the motivation you need. Your eyes shine brighter than they have before and loads of blue energy starts racing from your hands to the middle of your body. You’re shaking at this point, and Dean just watches to see what you will do.

When you got enough energy to blast Lucifer away, you expel the magic to knock Lucifer off his feet. He flies twenty feet away from you, and you slide off the hood of the Impala. Dean can’t get to you even if he tries. The only thing on your mind is the fact that Lucifer killed your dad. He groans and gets up, but there is a smile on his face.

“Is that the best you can do?” he asks, clearly taunting you.

Your magic come out of your hands like whips—long, thin, and very strong. You use both of your hands at the same time and raise them, only to slam them back to your body. The magic whips through the air and catches on his wrists. They circle his limbs tightly, and you yank on the magical whips, and he faceplants into the ground.

“You’re hurting Sam!” Dean yells as he slides off the car.

“No, keep going, Y/N!” Lucifer grins as he gets up.

The only thing on your mind is Lucifer, so you don’t hear Dean when he screams at you to stop. Lucifer gets up and rushes at you with the intent to take you down. Your magic shoots out of your body and creates a forcefield around your entire body to keep Lucifer away from you. He pounds on the forcefield, but it’s holding steady.

You’re using a lot of magic at this point, and Lucifer can see how much it’s affecting you. You’re trying so hard to kill Lucifer that you don’t feel blood dripping out of your nose. Your body can’t handle the amount of magic you're using, and Lucifer knows this. If he can get you to max out your magic, then he can hit two birds with one stone and kill both you and Dean.

He pushes against the forcefield, and his eyes shine bright red. His power, along with the demon blood that Sam drank, it’s enough to overpower you. He gives you one final shove, and you go flying into the side of the Impala. Your head smashes against the window causing it to shatter. Dean runs to help you, but Lucifer grabs at him.

“You know that Sam’s in here,” Lucifer taunts.

He punches Dean in the face as hard as he can, and the older Winchester goes flying next to you. Your vision is blurry, your head is pounding, and your body is just so weak and tired from using all that magic.

“And he’s going to feel the snap of your bones,” the devil continues. He grabs Dean’s collar since he knows you’re no threat to him and punches him with his right hand. “Every single one, and we’re going to take our time.”

Lucifer gives Dean one punch after another, giving Dean no time to react or fight back. You look up to see this happening, and you push away your own problems to help. You drag yourself to your feet and shoot one final blast of magic out of your hand and into Lucifer’s face. It doesn’t do much, but it catches his attention.

He drops Dean to the ground and grabs you, punching you in the face as hard as he can. Your jaw breaks, and blood squirts out of our mouth. You don’t see this ending well for either of you, but you’re not leaving Sam. You can muster up enough energy to cloak you and Dean to get away, but then Sam would be all alone. You know he can see what Lucifer is doing, so you have to stay for him.

Even if it means your death.

Lucifer grabs you and shoves you against the car, then uses his angelic powers to hold you steady. He then grabs Dean and shoves him right next to you. He wants to get you at the same time.

“Sam, it's okay. It's okay. I'm here. I'm here. I'm not gonna leave you,” Dean mumbles.

His face is swollen and bloody, but he still won’t leave. His right eye is swollen shut, there are cuts all over his face, and his teeth must be broken. You, on the other hand, look better, but you feel like a train wreck due to your magic. Lucifer punches you and Dean at the same time so that your head is forced to the side where Dean is. You stare into his one good eye, but you don’t say anything.

“We’re here for you Sam. We’re not going anywhere,” you pant, and move your head to face Lucifer.

He raises his fist to finish you off, but there is something in his eyes that makes him stop. Something inside the car reflects in his eyes, and you can see his eyes dilating to their normal size. Something inside you tells you that Sam has finally taken over. He stares at the same sport for a long time, and when he’s apparently done, he unclenches his fist. He lets go of you and Dean, and both of you fall to the ground against the Impala.

“It's okay, Dean. It's gonna be okay. I've got him,” Sam pants.

He takes out the Horsemen’s rings from his pocket and throws it to the ground. He chants the same words you did that opens the cage. Much like what happened earlier, a big hole starts to form on the ground that leads straight into the pit. There is nothing left inside of you to stop him because he needs to do this if he wants Lucifer gone.

“Sam!” Michael yells from the sidelines. You and the brothers look at the archangel possessing their half-brother. “It's not gonna end this way! Step back!”

“You're gonna have to make me!” Sam shouts.

“I have to fight my brother, Sam! Here and now! It's my destiny!”

Sam doesn’t care what he’s saying, and he looks at you and Dean who look like hell. He has a choice to make, and it either to give Michael what he wants or to jump into the pit. The look in his eyes says it all, and he closes his eyes to accept his fate. He spreads his arms out wide since he’ll be diving backwards into the cage.

Michael knows what he is going to do, and he lunches forward to stop him. He grabs at Sam’s jacket, but that only throws him off balance. Both men fall into the pit so that there are four people trapped in the cage—Michael, Lucifer, Sam, and Adam. After a few moments, the hole closes in a blinding flash of light. The Horsemen’s rings burn bright in the grass where the hole was previously.

You groan and get up even if your body is telling you to rest. You don’t have enough energy to stand and walk, so you crawl over to where the rings are. Dean follows behind slowly since he can’t believe his brother actually did it. You pick up the rings and hold them in your hand, not sure what to do now. Sam is gone, and you failed.

A shadow falls over you, which means there is someone standing behind you. Who could be out here? Your dad and Castiel are dead, so who could it be? You crane your neck to see Castiel standing there good as new—as if Lucifer never laid a hand on him.

“Castiel, you’re alive?” you say weakly.

Dean can only muster up enough energy to sigh.

“I’m better than that,” he says and touches both yours and Dean’s foreheads.

Just like that, you’re good as new. No more aches and pains, no cuts and bruises, and all of your energy is restored. Dean seems to have the same outcome. You and Dean stand up slowly to make sure you’re okay before you book it to your dad who still lays in the grass.

“Cas, are you God?” Dean asks.

“Daddy?” you say with tears in your eyes.

Your fingers touch his cheek delicately as if you’ll hurt him if you press too hard. He’s ice cold, and you see no signs of life in him. You haven’t had enough time with him, and you curse at yourself for being so harsh with him when you found out he was your dad and not your uncle.

“Please come back to me,” you cry and lean down to sob into his chest.

“Y/N,” Castiel says, and places a hand on your shoulder.

You look up at the angel, and sniffle. He crouches down next to you, and places two fingers on your dad’s forehead. You hold your breath as you wait to see what will happen. Just like that, your dad takes in a large breath and opens his eyes.

“Dad!” you exclaim and trap him in a tight hug.

He winces in pain, and you allow him to sit up before resuming your hug. Castiel walks away to give you some time alone. You want to thank the angel, but he already knows how appreciative you are.

“I’m here,” your dad whispers, and hugs you right back.

Everything is okay now, except for the fact that Sam is gone… and you failed.

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[damienthepious]

boy howdy it Sure Is Time For Lizard Kissin’. like. lots of Lizard Kissin’, honestly.

Scattered On My Shore (Chapter 17)

[Ch 1] [Ch 2] [Ch 3] [Ch 4] [Ch 5] [Ch 6] [Ch 7] [Ch 8] [Ch 9] [Ch 10] [Ch 11] [Ch 12] [Ch 13] [Ch 14] [Ch 15] [Ch 16] [ao3] [Ch 18] [Ch 19]

Fandom: The Penumbra Podcast

Relationship: Lord Arum/Sir Damien/Rilla, Sir Damien/Rilla, Lord Arum & The Keep

Characters: Rilla, Lord Arum, Sir Damien, The Keep

Additional Tags: Second Citadel, Lizard Kissin’ Tuesday, Pre-Relationship, (for the three of them. it’s established r/d), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Injury, Injury Recovery, Hurt/Comfort, Slow Burn, (this will also be), Enemies to Lovers, (for damien and arum eventually lol), Mutual Pining, canon typical Arum ignoring feelings

Fic Summary: Strange things wash up out of the lake near Rilla’s hut, on occasion. But this monster… this monster is certainly the strangest.

Chapter Summary: Morning, warm and safe, and together.

Chapter Notes: A short chapter and a weird chapter and i don't know whether to be sorry about it, but a certain someone(s) will yell at me if i am, so. I hope you enjoy? One more chapter probably to wrap things up, hopefully. probably. probably. I love you, kiss a lizzer.

~

Damien wakes at the same time he does nearly every day, regardless of the light strain in his muscles from the last leg of the journey, from the duel. He inhales deeply before his eyes are even open, and he hears an unfamiliar creak of wood, smells rich soil and vague sweet florals, feels the softness of his Rilla close by his side, feels-

The rise and fall of a scaled chest, beneath his own cheek. Scaled arms, wrapped around him. A clawed hand, curled at his lower back.

Damien blinks his eyes open, and stares at the gleaming, dappled scales he is resting against, and his heart-

His heart beats steady, and calm, and certain, and Damien wishes to wake like this… every day, if he is able. As often as he is allowed to do so, at the very least. His forever-flower close and safe and warm by his side, Arum's hands wrapped around the both of them.

He closes his eyes again, feeling their bodies beside him, committing this precise feeling to memory, future rhythms and rhymes tickling the back of his tongue. He breathes, slow and safe, and Rilla and Arum breathe as well, untroubled in slumber.

Content as he is, though, Damien knows that if he remains in their arms for much longer he will come in danger of waking them. The urge to press his lips to Rilla's shoulder, to the scales above Arum's heart- he would not dare risk it, but the temptation is too strong.

And- well, it is morning, and Damien has a routine to maintain, of course.

Arum's grasp upon him is loose in sleep; it is not terribly difficult to extricate himself, to allow the lizard's limbs to curl around Rilla instead, and neither wake though Rilla mutters something in her sleep as she presses her face into Arum's shoulder. That alone is enough that Damien needs press a hand hard over his mouth, the words on his tongue threatening to spill past his lips with the force of his adoration.

As Damien pulls his eyes away from that utterly enthralling sight, he realizes that they are no longer in the same place they fell to sleep the night before. They are not by Arum's table- in fact, they appear to be in a bed.

Arum's bed, Damien must assume.

He bites his lip, feels heat in his cheeks, and decides not to think too deeply on that particular detail.

Not at the moment, at least.

He tiptoes away from the bed, towards the loose curtain of leafy vines that separate the room from a wide balcony outside, shrugging off his shirt as he goes. The swamp below is utterly beautiful, breathtaking and thrumming with life, splotched with color and vibrancy, and Damien inhales the floral morning air of the Keep deeply, and then he begins his exercises.

Tranquility. Damien is filled with the feeling again as the sunlight hums warm through his eyelids, and he did not realize that he had been lacking, before. No, he had settled into his knighthood and achieved not tranquility, but complacency. Perhaps the one had preluded the other, but nonetheless he had allowed himself to forget the water, forget the flow of the river, to stagnate.

Damien slowly works his body, wakes his muscles, whispers his prayers to the morning air, to his Saint.

Mostly, this morning, his prayers revolve around the theme of thankfulness. Damien does not think he has ever felt so blessed.

He is settled, sun-warmed, utterly tranquil by the time he is finished, and he takes a long moment to simply… lean on the woven structure of the balcony railing, looking down upon the hazy glory of the swamp beneath him, rich greens and browns speckled through with vibrant purple, colors that echo and summon to memory the elegant visage of the monster still resting inside. The echo alone is enough to make Damien's heart ache, and he cannot think of a single good reason to deny himself the joy of returning to their sides, of holding patient vigil until his loves wake.

He gently sweeps the vine curtain aside as he steps back in from the sunlight, but he pauses in the threshold when he sees the flash of violet, gazing at him from the bed.

Rilla is still sleeping, still curled against Arum's chest, but the monster is awake. Awake, and attentive, if the brightness of his eyes is any indication, and Damien feels his cheeks heat again.

"A-Arum," he says, his voice pitched carefully low. "I- I did not wake you, did I?"

Arum shakes his head, his mouth curling into a slight smile.

Damien stands in the threshold, licks his lips, and Arum watches him quietly.

"I… it is… your home is beautiful, Lord Arum," he says eventually, and Arum's expression softens even further, going pleased and warm. "Thank you for… for sharing it with us."

"Honeysuckle," Arum says softly, and Damien feels the word like a ribbon wrapped around his throat. Soft, and welcome, but undeniable as well.

"Yes, Arum?"

The monster stares for another moment, one of his palms drifting very, very slowly up and down Rilla's back as she sleeps, and then his tongue flicks before he meets Damien's eyes again.

"Come here," he murmurs, and then he lifts a hand in Damien's direction. "Please."

Arum's eyes are soft, warm, perhaps a little worried- more worried, the longer Damien does not respond. He shakes off his surprise, and he does as Arum asks, padding closer until he is within Arum's reach.

Arum does not reach, though. Not immediately. He holds his outstretched hand just away from Damien's arm, and Damien sees him swallow before the monster glances up enough to meet his eyes again. "Honeysuckle," he repeats in a murmur, the nerves in his eyes sparking brighter.

Damien feels his lips pulling into a smile, affection making him feel near giddy, and then he kneels beside the bed, putting himself closer to eye level with the monster as he reclines, trapped beneath Rilla's quietly sleeping body.

"Arum," he murmurs, and then he drifts his palm across the back of Arum's hand, feeling the texture of scales against his skin, and then he gently pulls Arum's hand to his mouth so he may place a kiss at the heel of his palm, joy welling higher and hotter within him when that makes the monster give a keening sort of noise.

Arum swallows again, his hand flexing in Damien's, and then he drifts the tips of his claws across Damien's cheek with delicate care.

"Come here," he breathes again, and Damien blinks. "Closer, honeysuckle."

Damien leans forward, Arum's hand on his cheek tickling gentle as the space between them softens. Damien pulls himself back onto the bed beside them, careful, and Arum's eyes stay fixed upon him, steady and determined and only barely edged with nervousness now.

Damien pauses, then, close but still with space for breath between them, and there is something expectant on Arum's face now, but Damien is still not entirely sure…

He reaches out, cupping Arum's face as Arum is cupping his. Arum's breath catches, his frill raising just barely, and he leans into the touch, a rumble growing in his chest.

"Well?" the monster says in a whisper, and Damien blinks again.

"W-well?" he echoes, uncertain, and Arum's hand on his face flexes, claws so terribly careful against the skin beneath his ear. "Well, what?"

Arum exhales, his frill raising further, and the nervousness returns to his eyes though he does not pull his hand away. "I… I am… I imagine that you understand better… what is expected next. Human… convention is quite beyond me."

Damien tilts his head, letting his cheek rest more fully in Arum's palm. "I am not quite sure what you mean," he says gently.

"All- all of this." Arum gestures with another hand, vague and wincing as he does. "Being- being together. I have your example- yours and Amaryllis', but- but I have been- attempting not to allow myself to- look. Not to look too closely at the pair of you."

Damien blinks, warmth blooming brighter in his chest at the uncertainty and worry on Arum's face. "Oh." He breathes a light laugh, caressing Arum's jaw when the monster winces again. "Oh, well- if- if you are concerned for convention, I think you may safely set those concerns aside. This- this," he strokes his thumb over Arum's cheek, lifting his other hand and placing it over Arum's to draw light down Rilla's back. "This us. This you, and I, and she… it would be madness to expect us to be conventional, Arum. We must find our own rhythms, our own union, our own strength."

Arum exhales slowly, some of the tension in his shoulders softening, and he nods very slightly. "A fair point," he murmurs. "Nonetheless I am… uncertain what I should… do."

"Your instincts seem to be sound," Damien says, his voice warm, and then he pulls his hand back to cup Arum's own, cradling it against his cheek. "This is… quite lovely. I no longer need pretend that I have not longed for your hands upon me… longed to know the caress of scale upon my skin, longed to discover how your arms would feel around me… around us."

Arum's breath whirs, his tongue flicking, his slitted pupils slowly widening to dark diamonds. "You…" he smiles, very slightly. "Even at this hour you drift into poetics. I suppose I should not be surprised to hear the songbird lilt with the rise of the sun."

"I will lilt for you whenever you like, Arum," Damien breathes. "I am afraid I cannot help myself… the only words I can find to describe you, to describe what I want from you- they are all of them rather poetic."

"What you… want from me," Arum echoes, his tongue flicking again, and Damien feels his cheeks heat.

"I find myself more concerned, at the moment," he answers, "with what you want from me. If you are unsure what you should do, Arum, I think perhaps that would be the place to start. You answered me yesterday in a much grander sense, what you desire from us, but- what of this moment? No expectations, no convention. What do you desire?"

"You," Arum answers instantly, and Damien's breath leaves him in a sharp exhale. "Amaryllis," he continues. "This." He caresses Damien's cheek, the sharpness of his claws utterly careful, utterly safe. "Only this."

Damien blinks quickly, fighting back the dampness in his eyes, and his smile is helpless and warm. "An easy desire to fulfill, then," he murmurs, his voice wavering only slightly with the force of his adoration, and he edges a little closer, one arm pressing against Arum's as he arranges himself back on the bed more closely to the pair of them. "Have you any other desires we may meet with such ease?"

"I…" Arum trails off, his eyes flicking between Damien's, and then he gives a very soft laugh. "P-perhaps-"

Damien waits, but Arum does not finish the thought. He raises an eyebrow, staring at the monster as his frill begins to flutter again. "Arum?"

"Closer," Arum manages, his voice vaguely strained. "Would you-" he breaks off, hissing low, ducking his head, and then he sucks in a slower, steadying breath before he braves meeting Damien's eyes.

Violet, violet like-

Like nothing else. No metaphor Damien can summon would even come close. And those eyes, full of so much feeling, full of emotion, full of-

Love. Warm and overflowing, brighter and bolder than whatever fear is attempting to hold Arum's tongue.

"Kiss me again, Damien," the monster says at last, and the words may be a command in form, but Damien hears the desperation coloring them into a plea.

Damien's heart pulses, love rushing through him like a wave, and he knows that he could not possibly deny Lord Arum so sweet a request. He could not. Moreover, he does not want to.

Damien leans down, slow and patient, feeling Arum's sharp breath against him for a lingering moment before he presses even closer, and Arum's name bounces on his lips as they brush soft over the monster's mouth.

Arum gasps, light and sweet, one hand slipping back to claw gently through Damien's hair, the monster's breath whirring at the back of his throat, the texture of his scales making Damien's lips tingle.

Arum's mouth doesn't move like Rilla's, the contact stiffer, cooler, but the way his claws flex at the nape of Damien's neck, the soft whine he gives, the light pressure of his teeth against Damien's lower lip, all of it spins together into something strange, overwhelming, enthralling, and Damien is utterly helpless against the pull of it, utterly unable to do anything else besides press another kiss to Arum's mouth, and another, until they blend out of individual context, until he loses the thread of anything besides the sensation itself.

"Good morning," Rilla says, some time later by Damien's hazy estimation, and her voice is syrupy with sleep. Arum hisses as Damien pulls back with a sharp inhale, his heart swelling with delight as it ever does when his flower blesses him with her attention. She stretches against Arum (the monster gasps again), looking up at the both of them with warm, dark, gleeful eyes and a smile that squeezes Damien's heart. "Gotta say, I'm not a morning person, but if I can wake up to that more often I could probably be lured over to your side, Damien."

"Rilla," Damien murmurs, and Arum's claws are still in his hair as Rilla gives him that sly, loving smile, and Damien's fevered mind wonders briefly how happy it is physically possible to be. "Oh, oh love-"

She leans up and kisses him without preamble, and Damien's eyes slip automatically closed even as he hears Arum give a ticking rattle of surprise mere inches away, his palm drifting down the back of Damien's neck. Rilla's mouth slides against his own, familiar and intoxicating before she pulls back with a low hum of pleasure. "Sleep well, Damien?" she murmurs, and Damien presses another kiss to her cheek, chaste and delicate.

"Entirely soundly," he answers, "and blessed to wake with such beauty surrounding me, as well."

Arum ducks his head, his smile both flustered and pleased, his chest rumbling- purring, Damien realizes, at the base of his throat, and Rilla turns her warm gaze upon him next.

"Good morning, Arum," her voice soft as she smiles up at him, pressing her palm to his chest. "Are you feeling okay today?"

Arum blinks, as if taking a moment to remember his own injuries. "I… yes. I feel… I… I think, perhaps, I feel better than I ever have," he says, very quietly.

"Really," Rilla says, her eyebrows raising as her smile goes wider, her hand drifting up from his chest, up the column of his throat, gently brushing the edges of his healing frill. "All better, that quick?"

The monster wrinkles his snout, huffing a breath. "Well. A- a little sore, still, perhaps. But-"

Rilla lifts herself up, leaning to press her lips to the scales of his frill, and Arum breaks off into a whirring hiss.

"Saints," she whispers, and then she kisses him again, lips brushing his neck. "Y'know- I'd be lying if I said I hadn't wanted to do that for a long time."

"I-" Arum pants a breath, the hand he still has curled around her lifting to stroke down her braid. "I- I would be lying if I said I had not been longing for…" he exhales a laugh. "I didn't even know what. Your touch, your conversation, your attention … all of it. This." The arms he is caressing each of them with curl more tightly around them, tugging them into a proper embrace. "This," he says more softly, and then he runs the tip of his snout along Rilla's jaw, nuzzling and flicking his tongue lightly at the skin of her throat. He lifts his remaining two hands, taking Rilla's own in one and Damien's in the other, tangling his fingers with theirs, squeezing. "This," he repeats. "This, I wanted quite dearly."

Damien's heart swells almost painfully, and he lifts Arum's hand to kiss his knuckles, his mind a tangle of prayer and poetry and love.

"I wish I could keep you here forever," Arum whispers, giving barely enough breath to be heard, closing his eyes as Damien kisses his knuckles again. "I know, of course, I cannot. I know you must… return to your lives, but- but so short a time, knowing- allowing myself- so little time to- to love you properly, takatakataka. So little time before we must- before you leave-"

Rilla cups Arum's face in both hands, her dark skin so indescribably beautiful against the jewel-gleam of Arum's scales, and then she kisses him, slow and thorough and sweet, and Damien's heart swells yet again at the sight of these two precious creatures tangling together.

When she pulls back, only leaving just enough space between them for breath, for words, Arum exhales slowly, calmly.

"We'll figure it out," Rilla says, her voice utterly confident. "And… in the meantime," she pauses to kiss him again, "I don't see any reason to rush off home this instant, if you aren't eager to kick us out anymore-"

"Of course not," Arum growls. "Don't be ridiculous."

"Good," she says, and then she glances Damien's way, raising her eyebrow in a question that makes Damien's cheeks go hot, and he knows that she understands his desires precisely without him needing to even nod. "In that case… I think maybe we could just… spend the morning here... just like this, and we can work out something else I think we all want."

Arum stares up at her for an uncomprehending moment, and then Rilla presses another, deeper kiss to his mouth, her hands slipping back to wrap around him, one cupping the back of his head, her tongue darting out to trace the line of his teeth, and when she pulls back again Arum pants out a wild sort of breath, his diamond pupils widened such that they are nearly round, now.

"If," Damien says gently, "that is something you desire as well." He smiles, leaning up to peck the tip of Arum's snout much more chastely. "Whatever it is you do desire, we will love you all the same," he says, and Rilla nods beside him. "So… why don't you tell us, then. What do you want?"

Arum stares down at the both of them, his frill flared and flushed, his eyes wide and bright and intense, and then the monster smiles.

"You," he says, simply. "Both of you. Of course I want you, however much of yourselves you choose to share. I will treat your generosity with precisely as much care as it deserves."

Rilla's smirk softens, and she draws her hand down the back of Arum's neck slowly, making him hiss and shiver. "You big softie," she murmurs.

Arum narrows his eyes, though he cannot seem to clamp down on his own smile as he hisses, "Arrogant little creature."

"I love you both so much," Damien keens, the words bubbling up past any semblance of control, and Arum and Rilla both look towards him.

Rilla's smile is soft, understanding, and Arum looks nearly awestruck with it before he flicks his tongue, breathing something like a laugh. He shifts, pulling himself up to lean over Damien, crowding close enough to rub his cheek along Damien's, sweet and affectionate.

"I love the both of you more than I know how to say," he says in a voice that trembles with both emotion and laughter. "So perhaps-" he pulls back, his violet eyes so determined and full of undeniable desire, and he reaches a hand out, drawing Rilla closer as she laughs. "Perhaps, little humans, I should show you, instead."

[->]

[shibalen]

hi! sorry for sending in 4 asks last time! here’s take 2: can i rq an ohshc & mha matchup? i’m she/her. i prefer males, please! i’m around 4'10", shoulder length black hair & dark brown eyes. personality-wise, i’m not very expressive & seem apathetic unless i’m close to someone. i can act really childish & immature with people i’m close to, & i love teasing/pulling pranks on my friends. i’m a very messy person + i swear a lot. i like horror, psychological thrillers & action comedies. ♡ part 1!

random information; i’m a cancer. intj-t/intp-t. kind of changes. 3w4. ravenclaw + slytherin. i also really like spicy food- i dislike crowds & parties. i’m a very competitive person as well. i can be quite the sadist asdfghjk- i like cats too :,) i can play the piano & i have basic knowledge of a few other instruments. i like to draw, sing & sometimes write. i’m bad at comforting people- i give sorta good advice, but i always sound harsh. + i’m a night owl- i hate waking up in the morning. ♡ 2!

forgot to add: i’d like a romantic matchup please! i have a dog, but i prefer cats more. i can speak filipino, english, basic japanese & a teensy bit of swedish. i like indoor dates, but i also like dates in public aquariums & zoos! i’m also interested in things science-related, mostly biology, chemistry or anything space-related. i think that’s it. thanks in advance!! ♡ 3!

♡︎ matchup for @cherrycolaxo

howdy! that's okay, i understand the length can easily slip! i'm sorry your matchup took me almost two months to get to—hopefully it is worth the wait |ω･`)

|| ohshc: i match you with . . .

umehito nekozawa

• it was the matching first impressions vs reality that influenced me the most to put you together !! you both appear intimidating at first but in truth you're different and a lot more than what people make of you.

• i also think you can be a positive influence on Nekozawa. he is not good with people but your free-spirited nature encourages him to try a bit harder ♡︎

• he was looking for members for the black magic club when you first met. he asked you to join, expecting to be let down again, but then you agreed!

• instead of finding him creepy you thought he was an interesting character and that the club could be fun. plus, the Beelzenef puppet was cute; you got your own（ΦωΦ）

• through club activities you got to know each other and grew close. Nekozawa was scared to take the subject elsewhere than black magic at first, but soon learnt you share your love for cats and horror, and dislike for crowds.

• he felt like someone finally understood him outside his family and liked him despite his strange ways.

• likes to talk about your interests as well as the languages you speak. though into the supernatural, Nekozawa probably educated himself on science so he would know how seperate the two. now he's glad it's come in handy again.

• was admittedly taken off-guard by your change of character. you began teasing him playfully and pulling harmless pranks on him, and boy was just extremely confused????

• until he understood that's how you show you think of him as someone close. he cried.

• with you his days became more lively, and he learnt to enjoy himself. finds it hardcore that you can be a bit sadistic. a good trait for cursing people!

• once taught you russian to scare Tamaki who was convinced you were putting a voodoo spell on him.

• "mommy, there's two of them now!!!"

• you can't tell me wasn't crushing on you for months before he finally tried to do something about it. his dark soul could not handle the fluffy and fuzzy feelings consuming his being.

• proceeded to make the mistake of asking the host club for help and utterly embarrassed himself when trying to confess to you. it was chaos.

• you had to chase him down for two weeks before he agreed to show his face to you again.

• the rest is history. welcome to the dark side (ฅº￦ºฅ)

• your dates usually take place indoors because you both prefer it that way. despite his photophobia, Nekozawa occasionally manages to overcome his extreme goth levels to visit the aquarium with you.

• night dwellers™

• you skip school parties to practice black magic and tell stories in the dark, candle-lit club room. most students just assume you're in a cult now.

• the best person to share your drawings and writing with. he gets excited about everything you're willing to show him and actually gives great feedback, especially if it's magic or horror related.

• writes you dark and romantic poems. leaves them for you to find sometimes with a black rose next to the piece of paper ♥︎

• also says i love you by telling you to stay safe whenever you go outside and he can't come with you.

• you have to insinuate anything beyond hand-holding for a while though, because as much as Nekozawa wants to show you physical affection, he's too shy.

• you stop doing it though eventually, just to tease him, so you're surprised when he awkwardly nuzzles Beelzenef against your cheek.

• he got paranoid and thought you lost interest in him to be with the host club

• just kiss the puppet back and he's happy for the next three days. when embarrassed or shy he'll also use the puppet to convey his emotions. you've come to be a pro at reading puppet expressions.

• romantically your relationship advances slow and steady. it's very stong, built from lots of memories, trust and mutual understanding.

• tbh he doesn't need the sun when he's got you to brighten up his life ♥︎

runner up: Hikaru Hitachiin

⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

|| bnha: i match you with . . .

denki kaminari

• your personalities fit together like chocolate and vanilla ice-cream. you add the richness and denki the sweetness to the taste — in result your combination has the best flavor!

• the moment Denki first laid eyes on you he thought you were supe cute, so naturally his mind went 'a person who looks like she doesn't want to be talked to? *cracks knuckles* imma 'bout the change that.'

• your apathetic demeanor didn't throw him off his game, no sir. he just kept talking, flirting and hanging around you until you warmed up to him.

• quest accomplished :D

• i mean, he thought it was attractive how chill you were in the beginning, but uncovering that childish, prankster side of you was like finding a real gem ♡︎

• you can be chaotic together now! loves that you're not afraid to curse. so badass.

• developing feelings for you was an entirely different story, however. they came so naturally as you hung out that when Mina brought it up Denki just short-circuited.

• "You and y/n hang out a lot right?"

• "Yeah, we're super close!"

• "So you like her?"

• "Of course!"

• "Are you finally gonna ask her on a date then?"

• cue surprised pikachu face

• needless to say, he asked you on that date right away the next weekend. you went to the zoo, and he did a bunch of research beforehand to impress you.

• was still shooketh that he only just realised his feelings for you so all his attemps to be smooth were yeeted out the window.

• you still thought it was sweet how genuinely hard he tried to make your day enjoyable so thanked him with a kiss on the cheek.

• boy almost lost his final braincell from the shock and happiness.

• a very doting boyfriend! the type to be at your door with your favourite snacks at 2am if you text him you had a bad day.

• you don't even have to say anything because as your best friend/boyfriend he knows how you act when under the weather.

• even if you're just fine Denki is always down to clown with you. night owls as you are, midnight adventures to. mcdonalds and watching action comedies til the sun comes up are common (even on school nights, especially on school nights)

• 10/10 will do the 'i'm just stetching and yawning oops my arm is around your shoulder now haha'

• he's a bit scared of thrillers and horror though. please cuddle this bby he likes it very much when he has an excuse to be so close to you.

• when you walk together you hold hands. he doesn't want you to disappear or feel uncomfortable in the crowd. gets an ego boost cause he feels like he's protecting you. also, holding your hand is just really . . . nice.

• listens to you play the piano and sing all the time (you play so well and your voice is so pretty?? how??), other times you jam out together and you've got yourselves a chill date.

• he finds it so cool that you're into so many science-related subjects :0 he may not know much about them himself but he's proud that you do.

• will brag to anyone and everyone about how smart you, his girlfriend, are.

• matching phone cases, matching t-shirts, matching outfits, just end me why you gotta be so wholesome💀

• your dog loves him, so you take lots of walks together in the park. watching those two play is the sweetest!

• prank wars everywhere anytime! it's a subtle and continuous thing between you two, always competing who comes up with the best prank.

• don't worry about being a bit sadistic or harsh with your advice. if Bakugo's words don't bother him then neither will yours. he thinks you're much nicer than him, plus your advice is better.

• on that note, welcome to the bakusquadヾ(⌐■_■)ノ♪

• as much as he likes it when you get along with his friends and hang out with them, Denki doesn't forget the importance of quality time. he will always have time for you ♡︎

runner up: Tokoyami Fumikage

thank you for requesting, i hope you enjoyed the read!! any feedback you might have is welcome. also, remember to drink water ♡︎