#might have to open up another google doc today

[merpthealmighty]

LOOOOK AT VINCENT SINCLAIRRRR RIGHT THIS INSTANT YOU CANNOT AND WILL NOT TELL ME THAT HE DOES NOT LOOK HENRY CAVIL IN THE FACE??? LIKE LOOOK THAT JAWLINE IS PANTY DROPPING GOOD AND THAT SMOULDER OHHHHHHHHHH

HES DEAD IN THIS PIC BUT ITS COOL

HES SO HOOOOTTTTTTT

[todayisafridaynight]

I’m fairly new to the fandom, but I do have a question if you can answer it! Why do people ship Daigo with Aoki / Masato? I tried looking to see if they’ve interacted before, but couldn’t find anything! Sorry for asking I’m just </3 dumb AND I LOVE YOUR ART OF THEM!!! Nerd looking ahhhhhh

hi ! welcome to the community i hope you're having a lovely time so far and ty for enjoyin my stuff :) no need for apologies it's a very fair question to have :]

i cant speak for everyone (all. ten people into masadai anyway) but Personally To Me i just think the idea of them together is very funny. thats quite literally it im afraid..

[amourdivine]

𝐏𝐈𝐂𝐊 𝐀 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐃 🦢 𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐘 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐅𝐄𝐒𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐈𝐑 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄?

Hello, lovelies! I hope you're doing well. I bring you another romance topic today, found from the vault, forgotten in my Google Docs folder! Let me know how it resonates. If you liked this reading, please consider booking a paid reading or tipping me at @ amourdivinetarot@gmail.com! xo. ♡

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paid readings are open, click here to know more

none of the images are mine unless stated otherwise

how to choose your pile.  take deep breaths for a few minutes & look at each and every one of the piles separately. see which one brings you to a feeling, a place or a memory. take your time and feel free to come back to it later.

♡ ♡ ♡     pick a card masterlist & information

disclaimer. this is a general reading for entertainment purposes. tarot is a divination tool & is not a substitute for medical and professional advice, nor is it meant to be taken as such. i do not take responsibility for any choice(s) made by you or others regarding my readings.

amourdivine. 2021 - 2023 © do not copy, redistribute or edit my content.

PILE 01. 🕊️

who is this person? page of wands, the sun rx, seven of pentacles rx.

This person is very, very impatient. They tend to be more immature and on the feistier side, I definitely think they’re an extrovert or someone with Leo, Sagittarius or Aries in their big three. They might rush into things and have a bit of a self-sabotaging energy to them. Honestly, I think this person underestimates themselves and act out of passion and desire, so they’re not the most careful in love. They tend to be pessimistic because they wonder why their relationships go wrong, but they can rush into situations before they’re even ready and not always be willing to put the effort and time required for things to develop. Since they’re also being represented by the Page of Wands, you might question their feelings and motives towards you because they might seem fickle, even a bit childish for some of you. They have a lot of young energy, it could be in age or simply in their nature. By the way, this is definitely a new person, not someone from your past. I’m also getting more of a masculine vibe, but it doesn’t necessarily correlate to any specific gender.

how are they truly feeling?  six of pentacles, two of wands, the sun.

They see a lot of potential in your relationship with them. Like I said, this person tends to rush into things, so they aren’t super in their feelings about it, but they’re feeling very positive and they’re already wanting to make a move. This person could simply have a crush on you at first, since I don’t get any deeper feelings involved here. However, this person enjoys your presence a lot! You might have started out as friends and they love being in your presence, it turns their frown upside down. Since we also got The Sun card in the last question but in reverse, I think you make them feel more positive, happier and lighter in general. They are imagining a lot of things in their head for your future, but they feel that this connection is balanced and it could go somewhere much better than where it’s at. That’s also why they’re rushing, because they don’t want to waste any time. 

what are the circumstances regarding this confession? ten of swords rx, king of wands rx, two of cups.

They’re resisting these feelings. This person might be exhausted of all their thinking and imagining before they confess to you - they can’t wait any longer. They’re going to feel restricted and that’s why they’ll take action, so they’ll be super impulsive towards you. It might come out of the blue, at a totally random moment and it could shock you, but they’ll want to make sure to make it up to you later somehow. Maybe they’ll be venting to you and at one point they might kiss you recklessly or send a risky text. They’ll probably invite you to a date (especially dinner date) later on so that they can show you they’re interested and it’s not something that they told you just for the sake of it. They might be naturally flirty towards others, which is also why they’ll want to take you out, so you know that their feelings are romantic indeed, even if they’re at a very initial stage. They’ll be very, very nervous and fidgety (lol), might also stutter a bit and seem kind of random towards you. Honestly, there’s a lot of passion and you’ll seem even more attractive in their eyes. I can’t help but feel that they’ll try and plan everything out, only to be super hasty and clumsy with their confession (aw).

additional messages: summer breeze, “easy like sunday morning,” frat party, college roommates, sapphic/wlw, silk chiffon by muna & phoebe bridgers, 6:66, 222, light blue, hazy, champagne bubbles.

PILE 02. 🐇

who is this person? five of swords, the lovers, knight of cups.

This is someone whom you might have had a disagreement with. The intensity of this confrontation likely wasn’t anything light, so you could’ve had a falling out of sorts. They have a lot of air and Gemini energy, so there’s a duality to them that can be confusing and contradicting to you, because of their sharp wit and their spontaneous nature. This person seems like a lot! Not in a bad way, but they have a very proud and stubborn personality as well. With the Knight of Cups, this is someone who had and still has romantic feelings for you, whether you’ve known it or not. Even if you didn’t have any romantic involvement with this person, they nurse something very romantic and dreamy for you. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if this was an ex of yours, someone whom you were in a relationship with and ended things very badly. However, they’re not over you and no matter how difficult this situation must’ve been, they still love you very much.

how are they truly feeling?  five of pentacles, nine of pentacles rx, strength.

It’s surprising to me that this Strength card came out upright, because they’re not actually feeling strong at all. This person might be putting up a front, honestly. They could have some significant Leo placements and they might have turned this thing into a competition of “who cares less.” Which is immature, of course, but they feel left out in the cold, like all the future they had with you was lost. Even if they’re determined to make it back to you somehow, they feel that all of their chances and options were wasted and in vain. However, since we’re talking about their feelings, I don’t think it’s true that there are no options left here. They could be stuck in a self pitying mentality and that’s also what’s making them so miserable, even if they want to make things right again so badly. This person could type it out their feelings in a billion unsent texts and still be too proud to make a move.

what are the circumstances regarding this confession? judgement, eight of wands rx, wheel of fortune rx.

Enough time will have passed you by and the dust will have settled. They’ll make this choice because I can almost hear them saying to themselves “enough is enough.” Things will feel stagnant and for some of you, you might have even forgotten or let go of this person after this time of silence. They’re going to make this call after a very long time because they’ll realize that they’ve wasted too much time agonizing over these feelings and their pain instead of solving it. I pulled another card for clarification and got the Knight of Cups again, so they’ll probably realize they’re still not over you and that’s something they need to get off their chest. Honestly, I think they’ll be much more humble and loving the next time you speak to them, not only because they want to tell you how they truly feel and show their vulnerable side, but also because they don’t really expect much out of you. They could feel that they’re out of luck and out of chances to be with you, so you’ll have to be really clear about your feelings with this person, pile two, because they’re very fearful, but they’re pouring their heart out into this confession because it’ll be anything but easy to them. Also, the Universe might have nudged them a little to make this call.

additional messages: broken strings by james morrison & nelly furtado, “i know i was wrong but i regret it now,” “i’ve been a fool,” leo, sagittarius, capricorn, gemini, “i regret what i said,” “our fight was really triggering,” sorry by justin bieber, 888, 999, 10:10, february, aquarius mars.

PILE 03. 🐻‍❄️

who is this person? the tower, two of swords, six of pentacles.

This is someone who’s been through a lot, pile three. I think they can come across as insecure or even indecisive. They may be hard to read or someone who isn’t quite your type, but since they’re your next/first partner, it’ll be a welcomed surprise. They may struggle with making decisions, especially when it comes to confessing their feelings for you, because they might’ve been through a lot of difficult moments - like I said, this Tower also makes me wonder if they’re resisting some sort of change or feeling towards you because of their own fears. However, they try their best to be balanced. I think they’re very generous, very giving and caring towards people, but they may be harsh on themselves at times. This person could be a Libra, a Taurus or a Capricorn. I feel like they’re quite stubborn and they don’t actually like to take many risks. Perhaps being in love with you is something they found quite shocking, so it might take them some time to understand it.

how are they truly feeling?  king of swords, queen of cups, the hanged one.

So, I think after meditating on it for a little while, they’ll eventually evolve into a more mature, self-assured and calm energy. It may take them a while, as I said, but they’ll want to do this the right way, looking very steady and confident. This King of Swords is very logical and quite upfront, but they may be hiding their softer and more emotional side by the time they come forward. I think that the moment they confess to you, it won’t sound very emotional, but they’ll definitely be hiding this Queen of Cups underneath the King of Swords. The Hanged Man makes me think they’ll be patient with you, instead of demanding an answer right away, this person will want you to think about it, to really ponder over how you feel as well. But it also gives me the energy of someone who’s done enough contemplation over their feelings, hence why this King of Swords will come on strongly. They may seem more confident than what they actually feel, perhaps colder than intended, but they do have very strong feelings, they just don’t want to come off as too vulnerable or too emotional by the time they come clean about this. 

what are the circumstances regarding this confession? page of pentacles, the high priestess, six of swords.

There’s some healing coming from this person’s end. I cannot help but wonder if this person is someone you study or work with, but in whichever case, their offer will be something small, but significant to them. It may not be a “full blown date”, like something super luxurious, but they may offer to grab a cup of coffee with you to talk about these feelings. Something more subtle rather than super out there. Even the High Priestess itself has a more lowkey energy, so it’s possible they’ll try to do it in a more private or secluded space. I think this person will want to have a more quiet one on one with you, so it doesn’t seem like it’ll be a grand gesture. You likely won’t see this coming, so by the time they confess, you’ll have to use your intuition in order to see through that King of Swords energy I mentioned. They truly just want to let you know - I don’t think they have any high expectations over this, because the Six of Swords here gives me the idea that they’ll want to heal and move forward in case you reject them. With or without you, they’ll want to embark on a healing journey and keep going either way. They might feel a sense of relief or calm afterwards, like they have finally let these feelings and secret thoughts of you out. It’s going to be something very revealing for the both of you, something which will help them progress, whether this connection progresses or not. Of course, since this is your next partner, it’ll help the both of you move forward with your relationship and develop something from there.

additional messages: libra/7th house stellium, “i’ve made up my mind”, throw it on the fire by jon mclaughlin, “my life without you is just time”,  somewhere only we know by keane, “i just want to know how you feel,” “take your time.”

PILE 04. 🦢

who is this person? nine of swords, ten of wands, judgment.

I think this is someone who is always looking for “the light at the end of the tunnel.” It’s worth mentioning I am using the Vice Versa deck for your pile, so the imagery here is a little different than the original A.E. Waite deck. They’re likely a very hardworking and fierce person, but they’re also afraid of relying on others and asking for help. A little too proud, maybe? They could be an Aries or a Leo, but I’m more specifically getting Leo from this person. They’ve been through a lot, but still, they feel like life keeps throwing curveballs at them. Honestly, this person may suffer from burnout by the time you meet them, they may be a workaholic or someone very ambitious who wants to carve their own path in life. They may have had to start all over many times and have had a hard time finding their true calling in life, but they’ve begun to overcome these issues. This person can be very stubborn as well, maybe they don’t like hearing advice or asking for it somehow. I think you’ll recognize them by the way they try to tackle everything on their own and are a bit too proud to admit when something isn’t working or when they’re in the wrong, but they do mean well. 

how are they truly feeling?  three of cups, knight of cups, the emperor.

They might be friends with you, but the feelings are too strong for them to deny it. However, with The Emperor, it kind of confirms the fire energy for me, especially Aries as well. So they’re a little bit ashamed of how soft they truly feel for you. It’s interesting because despite wanting to look and feel in power, they just want to give you the world, even if you might reject them. This person is hopeful, though. They’ll want to look very confident and may even show off a little bit, but they want to impress you and that’s also why this Emperor is coming through. They can (and want to) give you everything you want, to be the kind of partner who honors you, someone you’re proud of. They’ve got great intentions, even though they’re not very good at communicating or explaining their feelings, they may have a little bit of a “rough edge” to them or have a very, very rational and inflexible approach about the way they feel. It’s almost like they’ll try to be very self-controlled and tough not to seem vulnerable, but deep down, these feelings are very real and they truly cherish your company. Again, I think this person will be friends with you - or at least try to remain friends before moving forward with their confession.

what are the circumstances regarding this confession? the star, queen of pentacles, two of pentacles.

They’re very hopeful! They may want to take you out somewhere fancy, give you the best of the best treatment and make you feel like a royal by their side. You may even find them to be a bit foolish? They’ll be so eager to please you, honestly. I even feel like the man in this Two of Pentacles card is juggling all things at once so he looks impressive or busy, when in fact, he’s struggling to keep up. I think this will be a very important and fancy date, something more.. official? Not something casual or anything you may take for granted. They want to make sure you’re comfortable and may even gawk at you a little bit. They find you really beautiful, pile four, that’s undeniable. There’s a lot of hope - they’re one hundred percent confident you’ll want them back (lol). I think both of you will be dressed up nicely, likely going somewhere to dine or walk? They think you’ve got everything, like you’re the full package, baby! It’s interesting that they’ll try to come off as The Emperor, but deep down I think they’ll try to find all of the ways in which they can “woo” you and make you theirs.

additional messages: “i’m worth it,” solar plexus chakra, if you want somebody by jon mclaughlin, poker face, “please notice”, the way you look tonight (cover) by shawn mendes, “can i kiss you?", fire signs, leo or aries venus/mars.

amourdivine. 2021 - 2023 © do not copy, redistribute or edit my content.

[ryanyflags]

A List of Gender Terms !

So I disappeared for 2 months, but I finally completed this project! :D (Though I've been making some random posts talking about it, so it's not like I was really gone, or what I was working on wasn't obvious.)

It started off as me having trouble keeping track of a couple gender terms (and also not knowing they existed before, since I've never really seen people talk about them), then I thought I should make a list, and if I was going to do that I might as well post it to help other people too. Which I started out trying to make that list on Tumblr, but I found it too limiting so I moved to google docs, which I also found too limiting (I just couldn't achieve my vision, if you will), and now I know html and css.

As usual, I kinda overdid it, but I think I should be a little proud of myself. I had 0 knowledge of html and css, and 2 months later I've made my own website. (I could have made it much quicker, but I often had to take breaks, a bit overwhelmed by all that new stuff.)

Anyways, it has a ton of terms on there.

I have sections for nonbinary, abinary, midbinary, atrinary, midtrinary, androgyne, agender, neutrois, maverique, ilyagender, aporagender, outherine, kenochoric, and xenogender.

For 7 categories (sex terms, adult, general term, child, gender quality, gender-quality-in-nature genders, and spectrum / -iagender spectrum).

And they all have sources on both Archive Today, Wayback Machine, and if still existing, the original post too. (At least to the best of my abilities, and there are a couple of exceptions that I couldn't figure out.)

I did put effort into this, but it's possible I missed something. So if I made a mistake anywhere, or if anyone has any extra information to add on, or if you just have some comments, you can tell me. My ask box is open, but comments on this post would probably be fine too.

Also, I checked on a couple of different browsers, mobile too, and read up on web accessibility and checked and all that (I tried using a screen reader, I'm not a pro at it though, so it's possible I may have missed something obvious), so I hope the website itself is useable. But if there's any bugs there, just tell me (it'll be appreciated).

I'm also thinking of making another compilation, but for flags (for all of the terms listed here), and maybe orientations too, but maybe later haha

I also don't know how to write a image id for the top picture, if anyone wants to write to one I'll add it.

-

Below the cut is a short little video scrolling through the site.

[tallymonster]

Careless Whisper ❤️ AO3 link ❤️‍🔥

Summary: Zesstra is a stripper and she just got off work. She turns on her computer and watches a very steamy streamer.

THIS IS PURE SMUT TRASH, IT IS NOT SERIOUS. If you come to my asks being an asshole, your ass will get BLOCKED.

A/N: there's a lot of emojis and out of character speak going on here. Do not take anything written here seriously, this was done for fun. Consider this a love letter to my friends on the Astarion Brainrot discord and to the ones who let me use their Tavs in this wild idea I had one day when I got too stoned and started to write on Google docs. Might be a one off, might be a thing, who knows?? Either way, enjoy! Happy Valentine's Day 😘💕

@cursedhaglette who let me use Halia (goldengalhal)

@tragedybunny who let me use Sera (SeraQueen)

@micropoe10 who let me use Colette (EcoGirl)

@just-a-refrigerator who let me use Elora (slutty_songstress)

And @bhaalbaaby who let me use Penelope

Thanks guys, I love love love you all 💕

Zesstra flops onto her bed with her laptop and a giant glass of wine in her hand. Another shitty day at work, but what's new? Being a dancer at the Fae Cabaret wasn't the ideal thing, but fuck, if the money wasn't worth getting her ass slapped for 10$ extra dollars in her tip pile.

Today though, was the last straw. The creepy rich dude who comes by every once in a while came by tonight, and did his same bullshit. She could practically recite his opening line “Hey gorgeous, why the sour face?” followed by a stupid smarmy laugh.

Zesstra smiled, put on the fake giggle, and slapped his shoulder. Next, he buys her the cheapest mixed drink, and of course, he gets himself an expensive glass of whiskey he never finishes.

She tries her hardest not to roll her eyes after he makes some degrading comment about her coworker, grimacing while he rants about some meeting with important people she doesn't give two fucks about.

Whatever, that's all in the past now. Tonight was about Zesstra, of course. It's her blessed time off and she was going to spend it the only way she could truly enjoy it.

Zesstra turned on her computer and went through her socials. The public one for family and close friends, some messages from the girls at work, nothing too exciting.

Then she flips to the slutty socials, the ones where she can post pictures from work. She answers some messages on her pay per post site, adds more lewd photos from her various shopping sprees, and scrolls for a few minutes. Messages pour in offering her the world for a few seconds of her attention, but there's really only one place she wishes to be.

Zesstra thinks back on the one bright spot in her nights. A regular she only knows as “The Lawyer”. He's a good looking elf, perfect silver hair, gorgeous face, dazzling red eyes that lock onto her as she walks the floor of the club.

He usually doesn't say much, but when he does Zesstra swears she’s heard that silky voice somewhere before. She put that thought to the back of her mind. Tonight was about seeking her own pleasure.

Clicking through the streaming sites she visits on nights when the images of him won't leave, she finds that her favorite creator, an asmr streamer called ProfaneDelight, just began his stream. Zesstra clicks on his name and pops her headphones on. She drinks more of the wine, and closes her eyes as his voice begins to fill her ears.

“Good evening, darlings.” She watches as he enters the frame of the video, his tight red shirt and black pants hug his body. The camera is at the most unfortunate angle, since it won't allow her to see his whole face which she assumes matches the delicious sound of his voice.

“Have you been waiting all day for me?” He huffs softly, a small laugh follows, “What a good audience you are…” His breathy tone sends shivers down her spine.

Zesstra kept her eyes on the screen as his hands come up to the desk he stands behind. She notices the black leather gloves with red piping along the edges that cover his hands.

“You know I can't stand to be away from you.”, his voice drips, seductively. “I bet you think of me while you do the most boring things.”

Zesstra can't help keeping her eyes locked on his hands, she tries not to, but her mind starts to imagine The Lawyer’s hands there instead.

“Do you get excited when you see time passing by as I get closer to coming back to you?”

His right hand comes up to the top of his shirt, slowly undoing a couple of buttons. A breathy sigh followed his hand as it lowered itself down his torso. Zesstra bites her lip in anticipation, taking another slow sip from her wine.

Her eyes follow his hand as it comes to a stop at the waistline of his pants. The heat rises to her cheeks when she sees the outline of his cock as the gloved hand cups it.

A strained groan escapes his lips, she can already feel the effects of his seduction working on her body. Her cheeks are heating up just by watching these slow teases.

Zesstra swallows more wine, watching as he opens his shirt more. The pale skin of his core seemed to shine in what appears to be candlelight. The soft yellows of the light bathe his body, the shadows cast highlight the muscles that are slowly exposed.

“Ah ah aaahh” he teases, “if you want more…you know what to do, darlings.”

Zesstra smirks mischievously, the money she earned tonight would be put to great use right now. She types a quick message and before she could type it she hears the ping of a donation from someone called goldengalhal.

goldengalhal sent 20$ “Starting off right, love. There's more where that came from 😘”

Zesstra rolls her eyes and sends her 25$ donation, 5 more than whomever that is. Back on the screen she sees her name and message pop up.

TestyZesty sent 25$ “couldn't wait to come home, looks like I got here just in time…”

He laughs and begins to slide one of the gloves off near the microphone. The soft scratching sound of the fabric rubbing against his pale hand sent more shivers through Zesstra’s skin.

As the glove comes completely off his hand, he taps on the mic, Zesstra sighs contentedly and licks the wine off her lip. She notices his fingers, and does a double take. They look familiar? She pours the last bit of this bottle into her glass and leans back to watch more before jumping to conclusions.

“Looks like we have someone who came by at the right time…little TestyZesty…my dear, what are you so testy about? Anything I can help with?” His lips curl into a little smirk, “I hear I give wonderful stress relief…”

Zesstra shoots up on her bed, her wine swivels in the glass and almost spills due to her abrupt reaction. “No fuckin’ way.” her jaw drops and she begins to type her response. Suddenly, another donation pings, this time from a SeraQueen.

SeraQueen sent 50$ “I had a bad day at work, can I get a little love too 🥺”

“Of course, dear. Hope your day can improve now that you're here, my Queen.” he responds with all the sweet words they all love.

Zesstra scoffs, “Biiiiitttttch, please.” she giggles and sends her message. As soon as it pops up on screen, she hears his melodic voice begin to read it.

“Work, irl shit. Life sucks, then you die. You make it better though.” she sees a small smirk on his lips, Gods, she would kill to suck on those lips. “Oh, don't be so nice to me, Zesty…you make me want to be nice back..” He draws out the last bit of that sentence, making the hairs on her arms stand on end.

The second hand comes up and begins the same languid dance of slipping the matching glove off. Bit by bit he takes the glove off each finger, a soft moan flows out of those pretty pink lips when he finally releases his hand from the offending accessory.

He strokes the microphone with his fingers as more soft, breathy moans leave his lips. “You're all so eager to get me exposed aren't you? All these adorable messages just for me?”

“You have no idea…” Zesstra grabs the second bottle of wine that sat on her nightstand, she unscrews the top and drinks straight from the bottle. More images of her Lawyer pop into her head, but her mind decides to think of the way he ran his hands all over her when she took him into the private rooms at the back of the club a couple of nights ago.

No matter how many times she's been told not to let people touch her, she can't help letting him do it every time they're alone. He was paying for the whole experience, of course, but sometimes she wonders what they would get away with if she were the one paying him.

She snaps out of it the moment she hears another donation ping from an EcoGirl.

EcoGirl sent 150$ “do you like to garden? Because I have a hedge that needs tending 😏”

“Oh no, little love. I can't mess up these immaculate hands…then how would I be able to make these streams?” He giggles a bit and stands to remove his belt. It's like a little game of back and forth comments and donations from different people.

Among the many she notices a comment from a slutty_songstress “how do I get you to sing for me? bet you make wonderful sounds 👀”. He apparently noticed that one as well, he reads it out and huffs into the microphone.

“I don't usually do private performances…most of the time I’m the one getting the dance done for me…” A skewed smirk grows on his face, as if he's trying to play coy.

Zesstra’s mind begins to fire off with unhinged horny thoughts. She would do anything to give this man a dance he would never forget. People do love her aloof drow attitude, who’s to say he wouldn't?

Before she could stop herself, she drops another donation.

TestyZesty sent 100$ “what kind of dancing? Are you going to the ballet or stopping by the Cabaret? maybe I'll see you there? 😘”

Another cheeky comment, sure to get his attention. He laughs again, and bites his lip. “Well, I do enjoy both, but I do hold a special place in my heart for the girls at the Fae…have a few in mind actually.”

Within seconds the chat is flooded with questions on who the girls could be. Zesstra sees a few of her coworker’s names flash up on the screen, most notably, Penelope, the pink tiefling with a huge fan base, and Nym the other drow girl who worked part time at the strip club.

Some even mentioned Nym’s brother Sorm, but he had given up the cabaret after finding himself a job as a model after one of his regulars hit it big during Faerun Fashion Week.

Penelope and Nym are Zesstra’s friends and friendly competition. Most nights where the three of them work, they'll place bets on which one of them will get hit on first (Penelope), which one will get a four figure tip (Nym), and who can get the client the most drunk within 30 minutes (Zesstra).

She giggles as the comments keep flying, eventually, one commenter names her!

“Have you seen Zesstra?? She's kind of a bitch but total dommy mommy energy 🥵”

Zesstra cackles like a banshee, “That's right, babes, fear me!” She takes a long drink from the bottle, amused that someone out there thought of her.

Back on stream, the delightful treat in front of her sucks his lip and releases it with a pop, “Darlings, I will never kiss and tell, but I do know one of my little friends is here right now.”

Zesstra sputters into her wine glass, she cannot believe what she just heard! Is he trying to imply that he's a possible client of the Fae??? There's no way, he's probably talking about the ballet that her cousin Octavia is a part of. But then again, how many of those girls sit in their room after a performance and flick their bean to this shit?

She chuckles the thought out of her head, and focuses her attention on the screen. She starts to type a message when a donation pops up.

goldengalhal sent 200$ “I do ballet, maybe you’ve seen one of our performances? I'm the prima ballerina at the Gate’s Performance Hall.”

“Good for you, goldengal. I do appreciate the arts, and I do love dressing up for the occasion, but….there's just something about the girls at the Fae that gets me going…”

Zesstra’s brain short-circuits. “OH MY FUCKING GODS.” Could he be one of her regulars????

Another donation. EcoGirl sent 50$ “CAN WE GET BACK TO THE MATTERS AT HAND?? our boyfriend is still wearing a shirt. 👀”

Zesstra laughs and sends her donation, TestyZesty sent 69$ “i agree with EcoGirl, can we get back to these pressing matters? In particular, the rest of those buttons 😏” An amused chuckle comes out of his lips, he stands and Zesstra could see him lean in closer to the microphone.

His hand slides down his chest, following along the line of buttons at the front of his shirt. The almost hushed sounds flowed from his lips. A strained groan here and a breathy moan there. Zesstra’s skin prickles under his teases.

His hands linger on the buttons that hold his shirt closed, one by one he begins to slide his fingers over the closures, his pale skin becoming more visible by the second. More soft whines and moans fill Zesstra’s ears, the vibrations pooling down in her core.

He leans over and speaks directly into the camera “I hope you all are pleased with yourselves, I don't usually let you all have this much power over me, but I figured with it being Lover’s Night, I would give my little pets a treat.”

He blows a kiss to the camera and begins running his hand down his neck, slowly trailing his hand down his now exposed chest. A low groan, almost a growly noise flutters out of his throat as he pulls the rest of his shirt open. The red silky looking fabric hung off his shoulders as his hand lingered on his waistband.

“Shall I keep going, lovelies? What do you think?”

The messages fly on the left hand side of Zesstra’s laptop screen. One after the other they compete for his attention until another high donation drops.

Slutty_songstress sent 200$ “off with the shirt, please (respectfully)”

“Well, my songstress, since you asked so politely…” The last word is drawn out, he lets his shirt drop from his shoulders, his hand throws it off and palms his cock again. He sucks his lip into his mouth, Zesstra could see what looked like a fang pop out the right side.

More breathy moans fill her ears as she begins to remember earlier in her night, when her bright spot waltzed into the club. She watched as the Lawyer walked up to the bar, he leaned on the counter and began to text furiously. Zesstra didn't usually feel so flustered because of a client, but the way he looked at her was not usual of the other patrons.

When she walked up to him he looked straight at her eyes and smiled. “Hello, beautiful.” She smiles back and leans over the bar, letting her shoulders drop, pressing her upper arms together to puff out her chest. The little game of playing it cool failed under his gaze.

They talk for a while before she hears her name being called, at the same time he checks his watch and notices the time. “I’m late to a very important meeting. Looks like we have to part ways, gorgeous. Maybe next time, we can have some time together? Perhaps away from these prying eyes?”

Zesstra could never properly hear him, no thanks to the loud ass music Alfira played behind the DJ booth, but she was pretty good at reading lips by now.

He slips her a note and winks as she bends down seductively to shove the little scrap of paper inside her platform boot. The moment ruined by Nym, who comes to pull her up on stage. Soon after she finishes her set, she pulls the little note out and reads it.

Zesstra’s jaw drops and sees that it's a business card for one of the most elite law firms in Faerun. It was a plain white card with his name, Astarion, and number written on it. On the back there was a note that read “I helped you once before, don't hesitate to ask again.”

She had given him her landlord’s number when they were trying to pull some shady shit and not fix her leaky shower. One call from “her lawyer” and it was done.

Seems like this was her chance, and given the amount of alcohol she's drunk so far, Zesstra decides to text the number.

“Hey, Astarion. It's Zesstra. Pretty bold of you to give me a business card.” She hits send and throws her phone on the nightstand. She'll check it later, he was probably busy at that meeting he mentioned.

Back in her room, she snaps back to reality yet again when she hears the sound of hundreds of messages scrolling past. Apparently in the time that she was in her daydream, her streamer had already undone his pants! She scoffs and types out a message.

TestyZesty sent 123$ “Holy shit, I looked away for five seconds and you sluts got his pants open??”

Zesstra hears the sultry voice reading her message out loud with a little wince at the end, “I guess if you were paying attention, you wouldn't be surprised.”

Her throat feels dry, she clenches and swallows. “You're all so sweet, letting me ramble like this…I wish I could see your face when you let me do whatever I want to you.”

Zesstra was already extremely turned on from seeing her crush earlier and the way she could feel his eyes studying her reactions.

“Touch yourself. I know you want to.”

As if she was being compelled to, her hand begins to trail down her center, slipping into her tiny shorts. She feels her wetness coating her fingers, her body opening up under his commands.

“Be good for me, I could be really good for you…” he slips his pants down, and she hears them hit the ground. His hand moves up to his waist, pulling at the fabric of his skin tight boxers, his cock very clearly hardened by this point.

“Oh fuck…” she slips her shorts completely off, spreading her legs on both sides of the laptop sitting on her bed. Her left hand goes back to work herself open while the right is tugging her bra up to play with her nipple.

“Give me what I want and I'll give you what you want, darlings.”

Another flood of donations and messages ring out, Zesstra wishes they would all just shut up and enjoy the show, but it's all part of the game.

EcoGirl sent 100$ “pleeease, I need to see this man cuuuuummmmmmm 🥵”

“As you wish, dear. Any particular way? Or is it the dealer's choice?” his voice drops as a sharp exhale escapes with a pout, his muscles tense and release as he runs his hand over his cock.

“Tell me how you want me to.” a sigh, and a moan, “I really wanna come for you all, you've been so good to me tonight..”

Two donations come in at the same time, each opposes the other.

SeraQueen sent 350$ “love the teasing, keep going, we love anything you give us”

goldengalhal sent 420$ “fuck your hand. Let us see your cock leak.”

“Ooh, the war begins…So direct, goldengal, and sooo generous…thank you, love. I do like what SeraQueen adds though, maybe I can give both of my generous beauties a compromise?’

He runs his left hand down the front of his boxers more, his breath hitches and stutters. His fingers teasing the length of his cock. He pulls the camera and the microphone down a bit and flops into the chair behind him.

TestyZesty sent 422$ “you look comfy, just how I imagined when I think of riding you when I touch myself.”

Zesstra had to take her hand off her tit to type that, but she could tell it had an effect on him. As a stripper, she could pretty much tell when any of the patrons got too excited by the dance. This guy clearly loved the attention he got doing these streams in more ways than one.

He begins to pull his boxers down, teasing them all with how slowly he was inching the fabric off. As soon as his cock is freed, it bounces back, bobbing with a twitch. “Is this what you think about, Zesty?”

TestyZesty sent 100$ “ fuck yes. I want to milk you, you drive me crazy.”

A pleased hum that turns into a moan follows as he runs his hands up his thighs, digging his nails into his skin. Zesstra can see the red scratch marks grow bright against his pale skin. Gods, she would love to bite down and see how pretty he would look bruised with little love bites all over.

He wraps one hand around his cock, the other continues to work his way up his toned chest, tweaking a nipple as he begins to lazily stroke his cock.

TestyZesty sent 100$ “get yourself nice and hard, I wanna have a good image of you underneath me.”

“Let me give you a better image then, darling Zesty…”

Zesstra is rewarded with a louder moan, he strokes himself a little more, grabbing a bottle off camera with his other hand. He flips the top and drizzles what looks like lube all over his cock.

EcoGirl sent 50$ “yesyesyesyes get it nice and slick, daddy. I would suck you all day if you let me.”

SeraQueen sent 240$ “you have the prettiest cock, so thick too”

“Oh EcoGirl, you like it when daddy fucks his hand? Would you like it to be your cunt instead? Maybe you and Sera can share?”

Zesstra clenches around nothing, she can't take it anymore and reaches down to fully indulge in herself. She begins to circle her clit, stroking slowly, trying to imitate the movements of his hand on screen.

His hand now coated in a combination of lube and precum slides up and down his hardened length, the muscles on his thighs flex and he lets out more breathy moans. “Let's see who can get me to come all over their beautiful tits, I do love it when they're covered with my come, bouncing in my face.”

Zesstra strokes down her pussy, her slick entrance is so desperate to be filled by him, to be the only one bringing him pleasure. She lets herself wander to the place in her mind where Astarion is the one making her mewl underneath him.

goldengalhal sent 300$ “faster, I love it when you can tell how desperate you are to come.”

He huffs and does as he's told, his hands find their places on his cock and on his balls, both working in tandem to ruin him for the audience. With one hand he strokes himself more, building up speed. His other cups his balls as his fingers spread, moving down towards his frenulum. He arches his back, thrusting into his hand more desperately.

Zesstra wants him to cry out for her like this, she wants to be the one to make him feel as good as he does for her, all she can bare to think of is his cock sliding inside her, splitting her open and taking what he wanted.

Waves of pleasure crash into Zesstra as she watches him stroking his cock faster, she can see how everyone's words affect him. The way his chest stutters as he's getting closer to his own high. His hips thrust up into his soaked hand, seeking release, his breaths growing more ragged and strained.

Zesstra's fingering herself in time with his thrusts, she lets the images of Astarion flood back into her head, his hands all over her as she grinds herself onto him during her dances. She rubs the heel of her palm into her clit faster as she feels herself getting closer, the moans and breaths in her ears pushing her closer to the edge.

“That's right, come for me…let me fill you with my come, get you nice and full for me. Have my seed drip down your legs as you go about your day…” a stutter followed by a strained groan “fuck yourself faster, I want to feel you come for me.”

Zesstra feels herself winding up more, the tension ready to snap at any moment, when she hears his moans grow louder and more primal. He's desperate to come and she would do anything to get that to happen. She keeps her eyes locked into his hands.

With her free hand she sends the last donation she thinks she can type before the lust fully takes her.

TestyZesty sent 69$ “come for me, gorgeous. Let me see you come and coat your beautiful skin.”

“Yes darling… gods, I'm so close… are you gonna come too, Zesty? Come with me, sweet girl.”

As if on command, Zesstra can feel herself crossing over the precipice, her body writhes and clenches as her cunt squeezes down on her fingers. She rides her orgasm out as she hears him panting and whining.

“Yes yes fuck you're so tight and wet, I can't take it anymore, fuuuuck…” he twists his hand on the rise of his hand, giving the head a bit of a squeeze. He thrusts into his hand with little shallow movements, his fingers from his other hand grip on his balls as he fucks his hand.

His body is clenching, tensing up more and more as he pushes himself over the edge, his cock twitches as he comes. The thick liquid coats his hand as it drips down. His body shudders as he keeps fucking his hand through his climax.

His moans stutter and his hips tremble. His waist and stomach are coated with his come, an obscene display for such a composed subject.

“Looks like I gotta clean up here, darlings.” he pants with a small laugh, his breath shallow and chest heaving. “For my little messenger, I hope you liked it. Expect a response from me soon, pet. Good night, loves.”

The stream ends, Zesstra thinks that little sign off was strange, but everyone has their thing. As she's coming down from one of the best orgasms she's had, she hears her phone ring and notices that Astarion has actually texted back! His meeting must've just ended, perfect timing.

When she opens the message, she nearly dropped her phone from the whiplash from throwing her head back. As plain as her own red eyes could see, was a short text. “You were pretty bold tonight, yourself, testyzesty…” Zesstra gasps, her eyes are as wide as dinner plates. “OH MY FUCKING GODS?!?!”

She immediately feels her hands trembling wildly. All she could think about was him, and it turns out that it was. Zesstra’s brain immediately blanks out when her phone rings again. “Did you mean what you said? Do you really want me like that?”

She quickly types a response and sent it back “I don't know what you're talking about.”

“Come now, dear. Don't play coy.” his response reads, “Pretty easy to figure out it was you, not many girls mention seeing me at the Cabaret. Thought you were trying to drop a hint? Figured you recognized my voice from earlier?

Zesstra didn't even think about it, the club is so fucking loud, her mind races at the fact that now she knows that he definitely got off to her watching him. “Did you always know?”

“No.” he replies.

“So then…you meant to give me your phone number tonight?”

“Yes. Let's just say, you intrigued me. Besides, you're not the only one who has a public and private life. I was hoping to let you in on my little secret eventually, but it seems life had other plans for us.”

Zesstra cannot believe what's going on right now, her mind is racing through the hundreds of times he's come through the club. The sudden departures and strange late night meetings, it all makes sense now. There were never any meetings…well, not with other lawyers at least.

“So….what happens now? I know who you are, you know who I am…do we keep going down this path or do we split ways?”

“I think you're a rather curious little kitten, why don't we see how far down the rabbit hole we can go? I'll send you my address. Let me know what you decide on.”

Zesstra bolts out of bed, she puts on the skimpy dress that hangs on the bathroom door. She slips it on and gathers some things before running to the door. As she makes her way down the stairwell of her building, she gets his address. She bites her lip and replies “I’m on my way, see you soon.”

[slveepyscwrs]

5 MORE reasons to start writing again (Motivation Post pt. 2!)

Hey besties, the original part one post has surpassed five reblogs! As promised, here are an additional five reasons why you should open your Google Doc, TextEdit, Notepad, or whatever it is and START. WRITING. THAT. FANFICTION!

Hear me out– getting your first hate comment. Of course, I'm not talking about constructive criticism (which is not 'hate' to begin with) or the genuinely distressing hate where it escalates to personal threats. I'm talking about the general angry Karen "Ugh how dare you!" type comments. Remember, haters only target successful people so they can be jealous. So, the moment you get that first hate comment, you know you're doing something right.

Those random strokes of genius you get while writing out your work. You will read over the same sentence five, even 10 times in amazement, asking yourself over and over again, "Wow, I was the one who wrote this?"

The ability to affect your readers' emotions. This is another one that I don't really see talked about that much, but it makes you feel so powerful when you realise that those silly little words you typed up ACTUALLY have an effect on how people feel. Trust me, you will feel over the moon when you start to get comments like, "This fic made me cry," "This fic SENT me LMAAOO," "I was having a bad day, but this fic made me feel so much better."

Your grades will improve. Regardless of whether you're writing for school or for fun, writing at all is still good practice. The techniques you learn while writing fanfiction will genuinely make you a better writer at school as well. This doesn't even have to apply to your English class only– soon, you will find yourself soaring in any writing-related subject.

Getting noticed by people who don't even speak the same language as you! It can be confusing at first when you write in one language but get a comment in another language, but it makes you feel good about yourself when you know that your fanfiction was so good that someone who might not even know English that well still wanted to read it.

That's it for today! If you have any more writing problems you want to ask me for advice about, or you would like to see more content like this, let me know in my 'Ask Me Anything!' section!

[rainbows-r-nice05]

~Stolen Glasses~

George Karim x Reader

Content: FLUFF and kissing

Summary: On one early morning, you decide to spice things up a little by stealing your lovers glasses.

Warnings: GRAMMER, it being my first fanfic I write.....

Word Count: 1,200 (according to Google Docs)

Notes: Ok y'all, This is my first fanfic ever writing and I sure do hope y'all like it. I apologize for my crappy writing. Please enjoy this fluffy fic I decided to do!!! I might do more.... just maybe.... (foreshadowinggggg).

@nevermoreakaemohogwarts I hope you like it!! <3

Warm, that's what you feel when you wake up. Eyes squinting as the sun beams down upon your face as you lie in your bed. Well, not your bed… more like George's bed. You two have been dating for about 3 months and you practically moved into his room. Let's just say you only go into his room when you have trouble sleeping or had a nightmare. Anyway, Someone must have opened the blinds while you were asleep. Only proves who had done it, which you were a little bit annoyed at. You also heard the shower running which meant that George must be in the shower. 

     Groaning you pulled the covers back and got up from the bed. You put on your fizzy socks as you look at the clock on George's night stand that reads 7 o'clock. You rolled your eyes since you could have slept in more. You were about to walk out when you spotted his glasses on his desk. A mischievous grin makes its way onto your face as you casually picked up his glasses and placed them in your pajama pocket. Your stomach gave a grumble which told you that you needed breakfast. 

     As you walked out of the room,  you could smell the tea that was already brewed and the delicious smelling blueberry pancakes. George must have woken up a lot earlier than you in order to make these. Walking down the stairs and into the kitchen, you realize how quiet it is, with the exception of the shower running. Oh right!! Lockwood and Lucy would not be back until around 8, their case included an overnight stay at a hotel. Well that's why it's so quiet.  

     You walked over to the counter and made yourself some tea and put some blueberry pancakes on a plate and decorated it. Syrup and whipped cream were the main toppings and you took the plate and your tea and sat down at the table. You took a sip of your warm tea and started eating your pancakes. "Mmmm George, these are so good", you say to yourself as you take the first bite.

     You loved the mornings at 35 Portland Row. Sun shining into the dining room and onto your face. The sounds of the birds chipping and the tea kettle whistling. Or sometimes it would be raining and those days were the best. But today was just another summer morning. 

     You then hear the shower shut off and the door to the bathroom opens. Then you see George with his wet messy hair sticking to his forehead with a big t-shirt on and guess what…. No trousers. You see George squint at you and all you could do is smile and blush at his stance.

"Y/n have you seen my glasses anywhere? I swore I put them on my dresser by my bed." You see him looking around the kitchen and moving things on the table.

"Not that I know of, Have you tried your pancakes because they are so good." You say trying to change the subject. George was now looking at you skeptically and turned back to his mug pouring the boiling water with the tea bag in it. Smirking, you slowly slipped the glasses out of your pocket and put them on your nose. 

     "Are you sure you ha-" he said as he turned around to see you mid bite into your pancake. You then continued to eat and smirked while George just stood there with a straight look on his face. "Y/n what do you have on your nose?" "I honestly do not know what you are talking about " you said as you sat back in your chair and looked at George. " Y/n…..you know exactly what I am talking about, now please give them back before I run into another wall." " Hmmmm…." You said thoughtfully as you put a finger to your chin. "No, sorry but I quite like your glasses, fit me well yea." 

     "If I do not get them in the next 3 seconds, there will be consequences." "And what would those consequences be?" You say as you raise an eyebrow. "You will see if you do not give them back" " I think I want to find out" you say smiling. 

 "Ok then, Three……" he says as he comes up closer to you ".... Two….." You have a feeling as to what's about to happen "....ONE…" 

     George lunges at you, hands at your sides tickling you. You laugh so hard trying to pry his hands away from you as George laughs and keeps tickling you. "GEORGE… STOPPPP!!" You say in between breaths as he continues tickling you. 

     You eventually escape his hands and quickly move to the other side of the table. " You know, this could all end if you would give me my glasses back." " Hmm… but I want to see what happens next." You held deep eye contact as You slowly moved toward the door. Looking behind you, you smirk and quickly run up the stairs, George following chasing after you. Laughter fills the air as you run into George's room and him hot on your tail. 

     "GEORGE WAIT AHH" You say as he tackles you onto his bed. Your laughs fill his ears and he pins your hands onto the bed with him straddling you. Your laughter fads as the both of you hold eye contact for a decent amount of time. Both of you are lost in each other's eyes and basking in the color of them. His dark chocolate brown eyes with your beautiful (e/c) eyes. George then glances at your lips and slowly moves in as if for a kiss. Just as your lips are about to touch, he backs out last minute and snaches his glasses from your face. "HA I have gotten my reward for chasing you up here," George says with a proud look on his face. You on the other hand are pretty flustered and as red as a tomato since you were teased. 

     "Not gonna lie, but my darling, you look quite good in my glasses." "Oh just shut up and kiss me already," you say as you put your arms around his neck. "As you wish my love," and the both of you lean in and press your lips to his lips. 

     This kiss was long and so much love and passion was put into that kiss. George's hand eventually went to your cheek as your hands started playing with the hairs on the back of his head. 

     As you pull away, George collapses on your chest with his head in your neck. You laugh as he snuggles more deeper into your neck. "Well, that was fun," you say as you play with George's hair. "Yea.. Maybe you should steal my glasses more often, my love." "Ok, I think I will, besides, I have got more plans to come as to when to STRIKE!!" you say as you snatch his glasses from his hand. "NOPE, you are too slick for that one darling," he says as he snatches them back and puts them on his face. You then pout and then George just busts out laughing. "Darling, you know that does not work on me." "Worth a try," you say as you place a soft kiss on top of his head. You both just sit there in comfortable silence and cuddling for about a good 5 minutes. 

     "Alright then, we better go down and eat breakfast before Lockwood and Lucy come home," George says as he gets up. "Yes you're indeed right," you say as you get up. George then waits for you at the door and interlocks your hand into his and shares one final short kiss before walking down stairs together. Oh yes, you were so going to get him back

[maximwtf]

“The cold winds of Caradhras.”

                                        Legolas x reader

words: 1530

google docs pages: 3

warnings: frostbite, cold weather?? Idk Legolas trying his best to help you.

opening: The winds of Caradhras are cold and strong, and to a human they might even be unbearable. A certain elf wants to help you warm up, but doesn’t really know how to.

AN// reader can be any gender!^^ It was freezing as hell today while I was training my dog, and thought this idea was funny :”D

Not proof read!

                “The cold winds of Caradhras. ”

Your feet went through the surface of the snow as you walked, making the white flakes stick to the fabric of your shoes  when you took another step. The wind had been hard the whole day, but now that the fellowship was on top of the mountain it was even worse. There was no cover from it, and on top of that it was pulling some of the snow up from the ground, and whipping it on your face. The ends of your hair had frozen just like your eyelashes had earlier, making them pure white. The wind had also gone through your clothing, making you shiver every now and then. You envied the elf walking in front of you, he seemed not bothered at all by the deep snow and the cold wind. He wasn’t even falling in the snow, being able to just walk normally on top of it, only leaving behind footprints. 

You heard someone fall, making you turn around to see who it was. Frodo rolled down the hill for a moment, and was pulled up by Aragorn. Seeing that he was fine, you turned back around and kept moving. Standing still for too long in the cold would freeze you even worse, so even if you were tired you had to keep moving. 

Not knowing how much time had passed since that, you tried to keep up with the rest of the group. The snow was seemingly deeper now, but you didn’t complain. Gandalf was the one walking in the front, and he was the one who had to make a path for the rest of you. He had to do most of the work, even if you still had to walk in the deep snow. 

Your whole body was shivering at this point. The winds of Caradhras were unforgiving, pushing through all your clothes and freezing you to your core. The winds brought frozen snowflakes along with it, making them hit your face and melt into cold drops of water. Your breathing had quickened as well, making the air you were letting out turn into clouds of steam. Cursing under your breath caught the attention of Legolas. He had been walking in front of you the whole time, only now and then slowing down a little, so he was walking on top of the snow beside you. 

You pushed your hands further into your pockets, and tried to shuffle more into your coat if that was even possible. Your ears had lost feeling a while back, after first hurting, then burning and lastly going numb. Even with your hand in your pockets, you could feel the tips of your fingers freeze. not to even mention your cheeks, both of them hurt and soon would start to burn just like your ears had. The amount of frost bites you would have after this journey must be insane. 

Legolas slowed down again, but you paid no mind to it since he had done it before. Only this time, he turned his gaze to you. “You seem like you’re freezing.” He said, following the steam as it rose up. You looked up at him while walking. “A good observation, though I assumed your elf eyes could see more.” You replied, then turning to look forward again. 

Legolas’ eyes followed you as he tilted his head a little. He didn’t understand what you had meant. “Whatever do you mean??” The elf asked, speeding up a little to catch up with you. You hummed, amused by his confusion. “Not only am I freezing, but I’m about 50% covered in frost bites. Safe to say, I’m more than freezing.” You explained to him, hugging yourself to keep in some warmth. 

Legolas furrowed his brows, clearly concerned by what you had said but also confused of how you had just brushed it off. He understood how humans could easily even pass out because of the extreme weathers the fellowship was now experiencing, and what you had just described didn’t sound good. He took a couple longer steps and jumped in front of you on the path you were on, blocking you from walking. You watched as Boromir passed you before turning your eyes to Legolas. “Move, I can’t pause.” You shivered, your jaw loosening up enough for your teeth to start chattering. “Look at you, you must warm up.” Legolas said. He might have not understood how cold felt and how it felt to be freezing like this, but he still did understand that it wasn’t safe. 

You felt the cold start to take over you now that you had stopped. Your right leg had started the pain, burning, numb process a while back. You could feel it heating up while looking at Legolas. Before you could reply to him you felt someone else pass you again. This time it was Frodo and after him was Aragorn. He paused as well, not saying anything but by looking at Legolas he must have somehow communicated a ‘what’s going on?’. “They’re freezing.” Legolas said, looking at you. Aragorn stayed quiet for a moment and looked around. his gaze seemed to have locked on something before he spoke up again. “There is a small cave close by. Take a short break there.” He then said and turned to look at Legolas again. He didn’t say anything, but you knew the look he gave Legolas meant that he trusted the elf enough to know Legolas would bring you back just fine and you’d be able to catch up with the group. 

Legolas nodded, letting Aragorn pass the both of you. The elf offered you his hand which you took and even leaned on him a little as the pain slowly started on your left leg. He began to lead you towards the cave, and once you were close enough he kicked some of the snow away from the entrance. You saw how some of it fell into the cave and that caused the rest of the snow to fall down almost like sand, revealing the whole entrance. Legolas then slid into the cave first, his hand poking out for you. Following him, you took his hand and slid down as well. The wind stopped almost instantly after getting in, causing you to sigh. Relieved. 

You backed against the corner of the rocky cave, pushing your knees to your chest to hopefully warm up. The cold walls and ground of the cave took away some of the warmth from you, keeping the shivering apparent. Legolas lowered himself next to you, clearly unsure of how to help you. You turned to look at him, trying hard not to let out a small laugh. He quite clearly wanted to help but didn’t know what would be effective. 

You found it hard to ask for help, but since you were already here and you didn’t want to waste any more time by just sitting here you decided to speak up. “Can I- Would it be okay if I sat closer to you. Your chest holds most of the warmth.” You said, placing your hands in the crook of your neck to warm them up. The cold felt unpleasant against your neck, but on the other hand at least your palms were finally warming up a little. You saw Legolas look away for a moment. Knowing that he wasn’t a huge fan of physical touch, you almost assumed that he’d say no. “Quite alright.” But then again, he was full of surprises.

You got up and placed yourself between his legs, back against his chest. Testing him by leaning your head against his shoulder carefully, but to your surprise he didn’t flinch away or even really tense up. Legolas placed his arms around you to bring more warmth. “We can’t stay here for long.” You stated, feeling the body warmth from the elf start to warm you up quickly. As another surprise, he seemed to be warming you up faster than another human would. But then again, the elves probably were able to change their body temperature in a different way than humans, since Legolas didn’t seem to mind the wind or the snow either. “You have to warm up first. We can catch up then.” The elf said, sharing his warmth. You sighed, letting yourself rest against the prince. 

You pulled your knees closer again, feeling your right leg slowly gaining feel again. That was a small victory and soon you’d be on the move again. This moment you would never allow anyone to speak of though. If anyone from the fellowship saw this, they would never live it down. 

So in the dark of the cave you rested against the elven prince, slowly warming up again.

[dangans-ur-ronpas]

Chapter 25

sorry this one took so long. unfortunately no sloppy homoeroticism this chapter, it was getting too long so i broke it up

SEE HERE FOR GENERAL WARNINGS AND FIC SUMMARY

Some pre-chapter notes:

can you kids get on with the next trial yet

my computer crashed like three different occasions while writing this so i fear it may be time to retire this google doc

@digitaldollsworld i owe u my life

Content warning tags: more issues with shaving and a shaving razor, canon-typical Monokuma cartoon violence, gun mention for aforementioned Monokuma antics, Monokuma-typical bullying (Monokuma as the bully, not the bully-ee)

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Contrary to popular belief; Byakuya does know what defeat is like.

And if asked about it, he would, of course, declare it all as part of a grander plan. A blip in the greater scheme of his life, a tactical retreat, losing a battle to gloriously win a war. And it wouldn’t be wholly untrue, for most of them; for every time he had had to back down, it always culminated in an opportunity to lower his opponents’ defenses, to bide his time before striking back fiercer, sharper, more decisive. The fact of his status now is proof of that.

So no, he’s never lost, never even truly tasted failure. How could he, Byakuya Togami, possibly even know the meaning of the word?

But the truth that he might only ever admit to himself - on days when his reflection looks a little too fragile, and the commoners around him are a little too near, too human for comfort - was that he was well aware of what defeat felt like. Like a cloying, oily sensation that clings to his skin, stubborn and agitating, refusing to be dislodged no matter how hard he scratches, like trying to quell some stubborn itch. Suffocating and irritating all at once, like ants marching in his loose-fitting skin. A constant uneasiness. Paranoia.

He had felt it often when he was younger, more stupid, more naive. Back when he foolishly thought it was the natural order of things for children to be shielded from unpleasant things, those strange and frightening concepts of death and betrayal, and would get so torn up in the aftermath of every little trauma that even Pennyworth would grow exasperated, ceasing his coddling and shoving him onward insteads.

He thought he’d forgotten it, but now he finds himself overly familiar with that feeling. Now, it was almost tedious - he’d be bored of it, if it wasn’t absolutely and hair-tearingly frustrating.

He slams the mirrored door of his bathroom cabinet shut, and hears its contents rattle and fall over. It was going to be hell when he opened it again, had to find or identify any of those tiny bottles by smell, but he didn’t care. The other alternative would have been to throw the razor, now sitting innocently and safely folded on the sink counter, and there are a whole slew of reasons why he shouldn’t do that, with the most fleeting, irrational one being that Pennyworth would click his tongue.

(God, Pennyworth. All servants had to be considered disposable, but he never thought he would miss that old man and his meddling so much.)

The cuts on his jaw sting as he splashes water over his face again, furiously scrubbing his hands down his cheeks. It was another failure again today; he had a feeling he was beginning to look rather shabby, given the unfamiliar prickling he can feel when he runs his fingers over his chin and upper lip, contrasting the stinging, sticky smoothness of his cheeks. The thought of being seen like this made him want to hide, and the thought of hiding himself away forever felt like shameful surrender, with no reassuringly great scheme to fall back on.

This is ridiculous. He reprimands himself, glaring at his reflection in the mirror. That now-familiar, still-infuriating mass of fuzzy yellow hovers back. It’s just one simple task. I still have my hands, and I can do this much.

As if mocking him, a thin, blurred line of blood immediately begins to track down his face, from near where his reflection’s ear should be. He slaps a hand to it, digs his fingers into the cut, and lets out a hiss between his teeth, more out of anger than the actual pain.

But the pain does its job in steadying him, focusing his thoughts. Enough! He needs to make up his mind, either to keep trying or go do something else. He’s spent too long holed up in his room, and he needs to eat and do something without relying on the unwanted, well-meaning pity of stupid individuals, and maybe show his face enough so the others don’t identify him as some strange, pathetic little hermit. He needs to get some new books from the library, having already read and reread a number of the old ones. He should do any number of things, instead of acting so paralyzed, so-

“Stuck, ain’tcha?”

He spins so fast he almost slips on the tile, hands slamming against the sink behind him to steady himself, wincing as his hip collides with the porcelain. Monokuma, that hateful little bastard, is standing in the doorway of his bathroom, head tilted in a mockery of concern. “Gosh, you look like-”

“Shut up,” He snaps, immediately, reflexively. A stupid move maybe, but the bear made it so easy to forget he was dangerous by sheer effort of being insufferable.

“Whaat? Such words you’re saying to your headmaster!” It gasps, and shakes its head. “Can’t a bear be a little concerned for its lil’ cubs? I do all this for ya, and this is how you talk to me! ...Oh, but I guess I never did respect my momma either at your age, I really oughta give her a call…”

It’s almost comical, the way it goes from shock, to stomping its feet is exaggerated anger, to immediately wilting with gloom. Distantly, Byakuya thinks that whatever technology is responsible for puppeting the thing must be very advanced, but that’s hardly his biggest concern. “Get out,” He says instead, voice clipped and rasping out of his throat. He hasn’t been taking as many fluids as he should, and the water from the bathroom tap always tastes a little too sulfuric for him.

“And now he’s in his rebellious phase! Oh momma, I knew I should’ve treated you better!” Monokuma wails, almost convincingly distraught. “Oh…but, I guess I’ll do as she did and treat you sweet anyways. It sure ain’t easy raising all you little whippersnappers, y’know?

“Anyways,” And it perks up, cheery again. “I just wanted to give you a lil’ heads up on today’s itinerary! I noticed that all of you’ve been a liiiitle stressed lately, so I wanted to treat all of you to something nice!” The words immediately set the hairs on the back of Byakuya’s neck on end. Something ‘nice’ from Monokuma could never mean something good. “Puhu…now, I did send out the message in the form of paper notes, y’know, go all retro to mix things up a bit - but then I remembered that that just wouldn’t be fair to all of us, and we just can’t have the meeting until we’re all present! So I came all the way over here, just for you, to deliver the message face-to-face!”

It’s an oddly considerate action on Monokuma’s part. So considerate, in fact, that Byakuya immediately hears alarm bells begin to ring in his head. “...When and where is this meeting,” He says, slowly.

“Well, in the gymnasium! Figured there was no need to break out the velvet carpet for just the ten of ya. And as for when, ah…” It looks at its wrist, taps at it. “Ten minutes ago!”

He reaches behind him and grabs the nearest object - the razor - and hurls it. It bounces off the tile with a loud crack, the silver blade flying open, but Monokuma dances backwards, out of range. “Whoa, careful! I’d hate to punish you for doin’ property damage! Someone might get hurt!”

“Out.” He all but roars, while at the same time scrambling. He nearly trips as he goes, narrowly avoiding stepping on the razor, hands scrabbling at the door frame to keep himself upright. He’s still dressed in his pajamas, and he digs through his drawers for a clean change - he can hear Monokuma cackling, delighted, but he hardly has time to pay the bear any mind as he fumbles with the buttons of his shirt, haste turning his fingers clumsy.

“Better hurry! They’ve been waiting awhile, and I made sure they couldn’t leave ‘til you showed up!” Monokuma taunts from behind him, somewhere near the entrance. He turns over his shoulder to spit something, some insult, but-

He blinks, pausing. The backdrop of his room greets him, yellow and green and mahogany and maroon, but no jarring black-white. The bear is gone, as suddenly as it had appeared, and he actually glances around, as if expecting to see it hiding somewhere ridiculous. Under his bed, maybe, or in his wastebasket? Waiting for an opportunity to jump out at him again.

He’s so distracted by this for a moment he almost forgets the more pressing issue at hand, which was trying to retain some of his ruined dignity, as best as he could possibly manage. He dresses as quickly as possible, no time for his tie, suspenders, or jacket; he’s slipping on his shoes while smoothing down his shirtfront at the same time, trying to make sure his buttons were properly matched, and is halfway down the hall before he realizes he hadn’t even heard Monokuma leave.

—

He makes it to gymnasium in record time, taking only a few seconds to calm his breathing and try and work his hair into something presentable, and to wait for his face to stop feeling so warm. There’s something large, rectangular and olive-gray pointed towards the doors, set up on a tripod, and for a moment it reminds Byakuya of a telescope - and then he nears it, and reflects that it might actually be a turret, aimed directly at the exit doors.

‘Made sure they couldn’t leave’, was it? He thinks, remembering Monokuma’s words, though he gives the thing a wide berth as he steps around it.

The others are already there, and they turn to him as he pushes the door open. They all look-

…Well, more or less the same as usual. Shapes and colors. Though Fukawa is sprawled flat and cross-armed on the ground like a child in a tantrum, and has her tongue lolling, so she’s probably Syo at the moment; that suspicion is confirmed when she sits up and spouts a stream of crude nonsense at him in greeting, which he immediately tunes out. And Asahina and Ogami are pressed shoulder to shoulder, or as much as they can be, with their height difference. Owada stands stiffly at a parade’s rest, hands clasped behind his back, facing dead ahead. His biker jacket is gone, as is his pompadour; his hair is limp and tied behind his head, and he’d somehow colored it black. It also looks much shorter than it should be. 

“You’re late!” Owada barks as he enters, which he also ignores, though it’s much harder than with Syo. He doesn’t like looking at Owada, or hearing him for that matter, but his loudness and size made both things rather difficult.

Kirigiri looks utterly unchanged. Standing a little distanced from the rest of them, arms crossed. She’s not facing him, but he has the feeling she’s watching anyways, peering from the corner of her eyes. Besides her is Makoto, standing maybe a little meter away, and much less subtle in his watching. He jumps up as Byakuya nears, making a half-aborted sound like he wants to say something, but then stifling it at the last moment.

Byakuya hesitates for an instant, caught by the inexplicable urge to go up to him, when-

“To- dude!” Someone calls from behind him, and he almost jumps, whipping behind him to scowl. At least Hagakure had hesitated before finishing whatever stupid nickname he was about to bestow on him, on top of Monokuma’s public humiliation. “Where were you? We were buzzing your doorbell and everything!”

Were they? He hadn’t heard a thing; he glares up towards the stage, to the only possible reason why that may be. Monokuma was already perched at his podium, rocking side to side and looking as innocent as can be.

“What’s the meaning of this,” He demands, ignoring Hagakure entirely. His throat still feels reedy, his voice a little too hoarse for his liking, but it carries loud and clipped in the hollow ceiling of the gymnasium, making it sound much more steady than he feels.

“Didn’t you get the memo, Mr. Togami? I delivered it myself ‘n everything, you know!” Monokuma puts its hands on its hips, shaking its head. “Really, just ‘cuz you’re in the prime of your life, doesn’t mean you oughta slack off, y’hear!”

Byakuya sorely wishes he had another object at hand to throw. As it is, he clenches his hands tight to keep from trembling too obviously; somehow, Monokuma had the ability to make him lose all rationality by sheer rage alone. Or maybe that was the stress, fraying all his sensibilities. Or maybe just his eyes again, the damnable source of it all.

He doesn’t get to say anything in rebuke, however. No sooner did he open his mouth, was Makoto already jumping to his defense: “You’re the one who’s singling him out!” He shouts, all fury and bluster. “You used written letters specifically to harass him!”

“Why, why, Mister Makoto, what is this j’accuse!” Monokuma gasps, as if the idea of tormenting any one student was unthinkable. “Why on earth would you think I was targeting him?”

“Because-” And then he stops, throttling himself halfway through the sentence with a choked-off sound. And Byakuya knows perfectly well why, and could almost picture the horrified, guilty look that the other boy must be throwing at him right now.

It’s a ridiculous sentiment. The damage had already been done during the trial, and avoiding any mention of it now couldn’t undo those actions; if anything, it makes him look even more fragile than before, ego teetering on his miserable condition.

“Er…” Yamada says timidly, breaking the quiet. “I’d rather not see this kind of subplot development right now, it’s kind of out of place with the current tone…”

“What’re you talkin’ ‘bout, ya uncultured chestnut! I’m eatin’ this up!” Syo snaps at him, rocking back and forth with her hands on her ankles. “This is better than my American TV-action-drama dramas!”

“Enough of this,” Ogami cuts in, firm and composed. “Monokuma. You called us here for a reason. But know whatever it is you’re planning, we will not break.”

There’s a small chorus of agreement that follows that. Asahina in particular, pipes up with a fervent “that’s right!”, and even Kirigiri nods her head, just once.

The bear giggles, hiding its stark grin behind its paws. “Now, now, no need to get all defensive, puhu! I've decided to change things up a bit this time. Up till now, I've been using sticks and the whoosh of the North Wind to get you all moving…but I think it’s the carrot’s time to shine! …Though, I’d much rather have a nice, fat salmon, but whatever!”

And it spreads its little arms, and in the next moment, something large and red falls from the ceiling and thwaps loudly onto the table.

There are gasps, some yelps, and a surprised squeal from Syo as the red flutters away to reveal…well, a mound of pale yellowy-green. Even without being able to discern any more details besides that, Byakuya can guess what it is.

“Here it is! A nice, hot sun to light a fire under your butts, in the form of a cool, ten mill-lee-on buckaroos!” Monokuma crows, barely even visible behind the stacks of bills. “A graduation gift for the lucky student that makes it out alive! Like, wowie zowie, amiright??”

So this was the next motive, was it? Byakuya feels his lip curling. “That’s hardly anything,” He says, disgustedly.

“Holey moley! S’that all real!?” Syo shrieks, completely drowning him out. “I mean, s’not like I can use it when I’m the Waldo to every cop’s where, but damn!”

“When it comes to motives, money certainly is the gold standard.” Kirigiri muses. “As is the case in most mystery novels, and the real world.”

“B-but,” Asahina speaks up hesitantly. “There’s…there’s no way we’d kill each other for money! …Right?”

It seems that some part of her was still shaken, since the last trial. Or maybe she couldn’t help being meek before Monokuma, who had killed several of their classmates in a rather violent manner at this point. In a different life he might have sneered and called that pathetic, but in the present moment he couldn’t help but feel like he understood.

It’s still pathetic though, he thinks to himself regardless. “Don’t forget what happened last time. We can’t judge others by our personal standards.” He says instead, harshly, and he doesn’t miss the way Owada flinches, composure flickering.

“Um. Well…that amount’s nothing, anyways!” Hagakure shouts, with a nervous edge in his words. “Ten million, hundred million, I don’t give a crap! Seriously!” 

“That’s right,” Ogami says, voice measured. “You can’t put a price on a person’s life.”

There are a few more similar platitudes uttered, as everyone tries to convince themselves that such an amount wouldn’t sway them. Yamada boasts something about ‘comiket’ and his subscriber count. Celeste chuckles as she describes the accumulation of her personal winnings. Syo…declares that she has no need for it, given that ‘Gloomy makes enough outta her little scribblings to keep us both in velvet if she really wanted! ‘Sides, if that ever tanks I could always just find some handsome fellas and bleed ‘em dry!’ which reassures no one.

Byakuya hardly pays them any mind, instead focusing on how Makoto and Kirigiri have stayed silent this whole time. The latter is to be expected, but the former…

Surely he’s not considering it. He’d refused Byakuya when he first offered him whatever wealth he wanted, back when they were initially agreeing upon the deal. There couldn’t have been anything that would’ve changed his mind since then-

No. There would’ve been. Byakuya feels his blood running cold. Hadn’t he rescinded his initial promise to ensure the safety of Makoto’s family, immediately following the second trial? Despite whatever good intentions there had been behind Makoto’s actions, hadn’t they gone punished instead of rewarded? Would that be enough to break his resolve about killing?

No, he still has Kirigiri. And he still has some kind of regard for me, if he’s so insistent on his meddling. The bread at his doorway, and Hagakure’s intervention was proof of that. He wouldn’t cast us aside so readily…would he?

“Wow, really~?” Monokuma giggles, drawing him out of his thoughts. “It’s sooo cute watching y’all try to act tough…well, good luck then! Have fun with your pure and communal lives!” It cackles, hops off the platform, and waddles off to disappear backstage. The money stays where it is, gaudy with the sheer amount of it. Byakuya has the irrational temptation to walk up and shove it all off the table.

The others are beginning to talk amongst themselves again, exchanging uneasy reassurances and nervous accusations. Owada is loudly declaring how ‘money is the root of all evil’ to an uncomfortable Hagakure. Syo is demanding proof that Ogami doesn’t have some debt racked up over illegal doping, with Asahina having to be held back. Yamada is being dragged off by Celeste, his protests going unheard.

None of it is of the utmost importance however, as he turns towards the door. Kirigiri and Makoto are already making their exit, so he follows them, just a few meters behind.

< previous - from start - next >

[sanastrawberryy]

Hi again! After a whole week of drowning in projects, I’m finally free!!1!1!1!1

And now, idol au part 4 let’s go!!

The only difference is no google doc this time cause I’ve used all the spaces for assignments yayayayayay. So, it will be pretty lengy. To be honest, I feel the least confident about this part, so if you guy have questions or just want to say anything please please comment because it really make my day 100% happier.

Okay, hope you guys enjoy this, heh.

( Oh and here’s part 1 part 2 part 3 if you want to read, please read ehehehehe )

———————————————————————

Early in the morning, before he could fully wake up, Cube heard some voices calling from outside the door. Dragging himself out of bed, he opened the door to find Pentellow with an incredibly excited expression.

"Thank goodness, you finally woke up!"

"Finally? H-How long have you been calling me?"

"That doesn't matter, hurry up and get ready, today is going to be amazing!"

With that, the girl quickly left. People here really live in a rush; can't they spare a moment for others to understand what they're saying? He looked at the clock. It was 7:05 AM, he had slept through his alarm, and if Pentellow hadn't called, he would have overslept, which would lead to unnecessary trouble. Silently thanking the senior girl, he continued with his morning routine.

The way to the film set wasn't far, just about a 10-minute walk. When he arrived, Iris and Pentellow were waiting, while Pyrare seemed to be talking to another manager in the distance. As soon as they saw him, the two seniors stood up, more cheerful than the day before.

"You arrived just in time, I have something to show you, lil man!" The purple man pulled the still-sleepy boy into a crowded area.

"This is the main film set, where you'll be practicing this morning. I'm the male lead in a TV show being filmed here, and I had to postpone the shooting schedule to teach you, so you better learn well."

"And I heard that Miss Penta here has a role in another project, right?"

Upon hearing this, Pentellow proudly announced:

"That's right! I have a role, but it's just a small one, and it's my first role since I'm still learning!"

Iris chuckled and turned to Cube, teasingly saying:

"This lil miss here is a core member of the famous ARSUN group, with hundreds of performance invitations, yet she still wants to take on acting. Isn't that a bit too ambitious? I wonder if she'll have time for fashion shows too?"

Pentellow, of course, was not pleased and shot back:

"Hmph, if I want to be an actress, that's my business. The more skilled I am in different fields, the better, unlike your nosy self!"

Iris just smirked and walked away towards Pyrare. Pentellow glared at him and said to Cube: "Forget him, let's go, it's almost time for practice “

Cube couldn't help but relate the argument he just witnessed to newlywed couples in his old dorm, always bickering over the smallest things. The two seniors were so close that he thought if they weren't in the entertainment industry, they might have been dating for a long time. Love in showbiz, in general, and in Paradise, in particular, is a serious matter that requires extreme caution; otherwise, one could get caught up in unnecessary scandals that could greatly affect the work of the entire center. He had never thought about dating and had no intention of getting involved in any relationship beyond that of colleagues, so he didn't need to worry about this issue. And right now, his top priority was his first acting practice at the main film set in just 2 minutes.

Each trainee was randomly assigned a role from previously produced films to assess their abilities, from which a suitable development direction could be determined. Most roles were easy to perform, with only a few being more challenging, and only the unluckiest would draw those. When it was Cube's turn, he kept praying for an easier role since he had no knowledge of acting. Unfortunately, his luck ran out, and he drew a more difficult role, that of a prince sentencing his treacherous close advisor to death. After reading the script, he already knew his future, turning to Iris, who was sitting in the judges' row, with a pleading look, even though he knew it wouldn't help at this point. He saw Iris nod slightly, signaling him to do his best. He wasn't sure if he had the strength to do so.

After being briefed on some basic knowledge, the trainees took turns practicing their parts. Most of them had light roles, so the performances were generally okay. When it was Cube's turn, he wiped the sweat streaming down his face and stepped heavily in front of the judges. With no way back, he had to perform with all the remaining ability he had, hoping not to be kicked out on his first day.

His performance was… hard to describe. Fortunately, he didn't stumble over his lines, but overall, he felt he fell far short compared to the previous contestants. During his performance, he heard some whispers, which made his already minimal confidence plummet even further, somewhat affecting his performance. The judges, including Iris, all shared the same opinion about him: “Showed effort, but lacks skills in adjusting expressions and confidence." He breathed a sigh of relief, yes, relieved that he hadn't been kicked out of class and harshly judged, yes.

After class, Cube's group went to have lunch together in area 01. Iris sighed as he looked at him:

"To be honest, if I were the director, you'd be a backup for a crowd character, and that's if you were even accepted into the film set. From the start, I saw you weren't cut out to be an actor; I even intended to ask for you to be excused from acting classes so you wouldn't lose face, but that didn't happen. It's truly a miracle that you were kept in that class, but I advise you to focus on your music career instead; acting, on the other hand, is..pretty tough, for you”

Pentellow looked at Cube, forcing a smile:

"Hehe, I was going to argue, but he's too right. But don't worry! With your talent, shining on stage won't be hard at all; just believe in yourself!"

Pyrare, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up:

"What you two said is true. Cube, just because you're not good at acting doesn't mean you're lacking in everything else. I believe that as long as you have the determination to try, you'll achieve significant success, not just in music. I, along with everyone else, believe in you."

Cube felt deeply moved by the encouragement from the seniors. He wasn't upset about his poor acting, but hearing those words gave him a huge source of motivation, making him feel more confident. He was determined not to let these kind seniors down.

"Yes, I will do my best, thank you so much..."

The lunch break was only 2 hours long, and after eating, he quickly ran to the practice area from yesterday to prepare for the afternoon stage acting class. This time it was just theory, so the seniors didn't need to attend in the afternoon, which made him feel a bit more relaxed. When he got there, the seats were already arranged in the middle of the yard, with a few people scattered around. Cube chose a spot for himself and settled in, waiting for the class to start.

This stage act class didn't have much to offer, except for lengthy theories and some confusing movements that he couldn't quite visualize. At the end of the class, he returned to his room to prepare for tonight when he saw Pyrare waiting for him not far away. As soon as he spotted Cube, he stood up straight, his voice serious as he asked:

"Cube, I just received a notification from the event organizers for tonight's performance. They expressed a desire to invite you to participate in a segment as a backup vocalist, as the person assigned to that role fell ill unexpectedly. If you accept, they will prepare everything for you and postpone the performance time to give you time to practice."

He paused for a moment, then continued:

"Of course, you can decline; they won't force you, and you can still participate normally. I know this is very sudden, but I hope you can give me your answer as soon as possible, at least 30 minutes before 8:00 PM tonight."

Pyrare looked at him with a meaningful gaze, patiently waiting for the young boy in front of him to process what he had just said.

Cube couldn't believe his ears. He was invited to perform tonight, he was invited to perform tonight, he was invited to perform tonight. The performance was originally meant for graduates, at least for elite trainees who had been trained for years. Yet here he was - a kid who had only been accepted for less than three days - being invited to perform as a backup vocalist. This was truly an enormous honor for a new trainee like him, even if it was just as a backup singer. He stammered, asking the manager, hoping he had misheard:

"A-A-Are you serious? I… I was invited… a…?"

Pyrare, receiving Cube's response, sighed and continued:

"...They said you have talent and want to give you a chance to showcase yourself in front of the other trainees. This is a great honor; if possible, I would like you to accept this offer because it's rare for a first-year trainee to be invited to perform at such a significant event. But…”

He wanted to continue, but hesitated. Cube looked at Pyrare's indescribable expression, and his heart was filled with mixed feelings about this invitation. On one hand, the invitation was like a golden and diamond-encrusted opportunity, paving the way for an extremely bright future for a trainee just starting out in the profession. But on the other hand, he wasn't sure if performing on such a big stage could make him shine like Pyrare said. He had barely performed in front of a crowd since the interview, and like his three seniors said, he didn't have enough confidence to stand in front of an audience, especially when the audience was his peers. The two sides were fiercely fighting in his mind, making him unable to speak out and reply to Pyrare.

"You don't have to answer me right away. Think carefully before making a decision, you have until 7:30 tonight to answer me. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go now."

Cube struggled with himself for a while without realizing that Pyrare had long since left, and almost everyone else had gone home. He just stood there, until the security guard came and patted his shoulder, only then he came back to his senses and hurriedly returned to the dormitory.

Back in his room, he looked at the clock, it was 6:32 pm, just in time to shower and have a snack. He thought about Pyrare's words, his tone at that time was very doubtful and seemed unhappy when he made the offer to him. This made him even more suspicious of that extremely precious invitation, wondering if he should refuse it or not. Besides, standing on stage in front of hundreds of people really made him nervous, his performance would be greatly affected. At that time, he was not sure if he could complete the performance completely, or become a topic of bad gossip for the other trainees, something he did not want at all. The golden opportunity had now become full of danger and risk, an inexperienced trainee like him could not take on such a big role without ruining it.

It was decided, even if it seemed stupid to others to refuse the organizers' invitation, he could not risk his image in front of the audience when he had just entered Paradise, especially in an industry where image was almost the most important thing. He quickly took a shower and had a snack, then turned to the door of the room. But as soon as he opened the wooden door, he saw the tall manager standing right next to him, along with the curious eyes of some people passing by.

“E-Eh, why are you here, and also, w-how do you know my room?”

“The managers know all the interns’ room numbers.”

“Oh, what a coincidence, I was also looking for you…um…”

“I know what you’re looking for me for, have you got an answer yet?”

Here it is, Cube took a deep breath:

“I-I don’t think I’m capable enough to…you know, perform on such a big stage. It would be better to let someone else…more experienced than me…I’m sorry…”

Hearing that, Pyrare’s expression relaxed a bit, he even saw a flash of satisfaction on his face, but it only lasted less than 2 seconds before returning to a calm and serious expression:

“I understand, I will inform the organizers about your answer. Thank you for thinking about the invitation, and once again I apologize for being so abrupt. I’ll excuse myself.”

Cube felt like a huge burden had been lifted off his shoulders, it was better than being a laughing stock to others. The trainees attending had to be present at 7:45 for roll call, he ran back to the venue with all his might, just in time for the staff to come out to count the number of people. The venue was huge, it looked like it could hold a thousand people, but the trainees were all placed in the top row of seats for easier monitoring. Cube deliberately chose a seat in the corner to be as far away from the organizers as possible to avoid embarrassment, but there was no such thing as spring when their keen eyes had already spotted him long ago, one of them even looked at him for a long time, making his back shiver. Unpleasant experiences automatically increased by 50%.

The performances were all very special and outstanding. Cube was most impressed by the piano performance by a female artist who had 5 years of performing experience, according to the MC. She had a gentle, refined yet indifferent style, and to be honest, he really wanted to learn from her. However, he couldn’t ignore the way the people in the organizing committee seats kept trying to talk to him, despite his best efforts to avoid and squeeze past each person to get out of the event. But, when a man pulled his shoulder, he knew he was done for, with no way to escape. The man saw him give up all attempts to escape, and said warmly:

“Mr. Hexahedron, it’s an honor to meet you. Come here, we have a few things to ask for your opinion, please don’t be so polite.”

From afar, a few curious interns lingered to watch, but were all reminded by the staff to go outside. This is trouble, he thought of all the reasons to refuse, but the other man seemed to read his mind:

“Don't worry, we won't take up too much of your precious time. Just relax, we'll solve it quickly if you cooperate with us.”

His actions seemed polite and humble, but Cube knew who was in charge.

“We heard about you from a veteran member of our management team. He had a good impression of you, which is rare for others, so we are looking forward to seeing your talent, Hexahedron.”

Cube guessed that the person in question was the judge from last time. Was he really interested in you to the point of telling the management team?

“It’s a pity that you didn’t get the chance to shine as we wanted today, but that was your choice, and we respect that. However, you still have many opportunities to prove your ability to us in the future, first of all is the new trainees’ gala next weekend. If you want, we will arrange a performance for you, at that time, you can perform in any form, we and the staffs will support you as much as possible to make the party go smoothly. What do you think about this idea? ”

Cube really wanted to run away right now. He had already refused the organizers' invitation once, now they were determined to keep him, he couldn't refuse and he couldn't accept. The manager looked at him patiently, his eyes showing absolutely no signs of annoyance or joy, making it impossible for him to guess what he was thinking. He racked his brains, trying to find a way out for himself before being cornered by the man in front of him. Of course, the best answer a minor could come up with when faced with a grown man's questioning was:

"I-I'll think about it, thank you for your concern, senior..."

..The manager laughed, Cube didn't know if he was looking down on him or not.

"Alright, please respond to us as soon as possible. We look forward to working with you, Hexahedron. You can go to your dorm now. Have a lovely night."

Cube bowed to him, walked out of the venue and ran back to the intern building as if he was being chased.

He locked the door out of reflex, even though the security here was very good, as if he was afraid someone would block his door and ask about this or that performance. The warm light from the room calmed his confused mood a bit, he quickly cleaned himself up and collapsed straight onto the bed. His whole body was limp, his limbs could not move as soon as he placed them on the soft mattress. When he was still working at the bar, because of his good physique, he often took on the task of carrying heavy boxes, and had never suffered any health problems. But after only 3 days here, he felt like his strength had been drained, both inside and out, and he had no mind to think about anything else.

Perhaps the only comfort was that tonight he didn't have to read a book to help him sleep, and he passed out like that, ending the third day.

———————————————————————

[the-fools-route]

THE FOOLS ROUTE

Chapter 3

Google docs isn't working so I don't know the word count. 😐

Expect grammar mistakes

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

" Rise and shine! "

Portia opens the curtains, filling the room with light. I pull the covers over my head, it's way too bright right now.

" Not a morning person huh? Maybe I can convince you to get up with some breakfast? "

I slowly pull the blanket from my face.

" I might be interested."

She laughs at that. She sets a silver tray on the dresser next to my bed. It's filled with warm flaky pastries.

" I also brought a fresh set of clothes for you to wear. "

She sets the clothes pile on my bed, and she looks at me funny.

" Are you ok? You look like you're thinking of something important. "

The golden corridors still cloud my mind.

" Just a weird dream. "

She makes a sound of acknowledgement.

" You have a pretty free day today, all you really have to do is join milady for dinner tonight. I have to leave to run some errands. But till then, the world is your oyster! "

The door clicks and all is quiet. But my mind is not. I cannot stop thinking about last night. I usually have weird dreams, but this one takes the cake. Candlewick lightly lifts his head, swaying. He first slowly surveys the room, then trots to the edge of the bed and slides off. He lazily wanders around the room, exploring his new domain. I pull my phone from my pocket, the battery level is still the same. Strange. I sigh heavily, loud enough to make Wick look at me.

" What do I do now? "

Candlewick sits, as if he was thinking. He then trots to the bed pawing toward the folded clothes.

" Yeah, I should probably change. "

I've been given loose steel blue pants and a lighter blue top. The sleeves are wide and flowing. The outfit clashes with my red shoes, but I don't mind much.

" You know, for a cat you seem to understand me pretty well. "

He rolls on his back ignoring me. The platter Portia left me was fairly large, and very expensive looking. I trace the intricate designs of the silver platter with my finger. There were 5 pastries, some with what looks like fruit jam inside. Don't get me wrong, I love fruit. I'm just picky about how I eat them. Jam is a no no. I take the most plain looking bread roll. I be careful to not drop any crumbs on the floor, which proved to be more of a problem then I thought it would.

I leave my room to explore for the day since I'm not very busy. Candlewick trots close behind me, he seems to be a great travel buddy. I'm glad I'm not alone. The halls are brilliantly lit by the golden sun. The silk curtains gleam and the floors I swear were mirrors in their past life. The halls are much more lively than they were yesterday, people with big hats and bigger feathers adorned on them walk the halls. Some are holding papers or baskets, and some wave at me. I shyly wave back. I really don't belong here, I'm like a stray dog. At least dogs are cute. I explore different rooms, and believe me there are plenty of them here for me to stoop in. I found a a room filled with instruments, and another with chairs and couches. I hope nobody minds that I'm snooping around.

I eventually find large double doors that lead into an empty ballroom, a very big empty ballroom. A glass dome ceiling lets streams of light in, sending gold streaks to dance around the room. I Imagine the light morphing into people in regal dresses and suits, spinning and gliding effortlessly across the floor. It's beautiful. I personally don't know how to dance, but it feel like the right thing to do right now. I pick Candlewick up and hold him in my arms.

" May I have this dance? "

He peeps.

" That's probably a yes. "

I spin around the room trying to copy the golden phantoms around me, it's not easy. I keep tripping over my feet, but I don't mind. I sing to Candlewick a song that doesn't exist here, something only known by me. He purrs contentedly, I swear he's swaying with me. A cloud passes over the skylight dimming the light. The gold dancers disappear leaving us alone. I drop Candlewick and bow, and I can't help myself but laugh. Who knew dancing could be fun? The cloud passes and the room is bright again.

" Where to now? "

He stares at me for exactly two seconds then takes off running to a door on the right. I chase after him.

" Whoa! Can't we just walk or something? "

I dont understand how he can run so fast with so little traction. He slips through a cracked door and disappears. I persue to to little avail. The aroma of flowers swirl around my head as I open the door. I must be on the balcony from yesterday. Large marble stairs lead me down from the balcony to the gardens.

Morning dew blankets vibrant flowers of all shapes and sizes, I recognize a few of them. Peonies, roses, lavender, so on so forth. I move at a slow pace around the garden beds trying to find where that dang cat went, I find nothing but the sound of the early birds and the first sunshine of the day. I end up not finding him in the end, but instead finding a large white pavilion with a table and some chairs. I take a break from searching, he will show up eventually.

A cockatoo lands on the table I'm sitting at. He hops around and surveys me with his red eyes.

" Hello there friend. "

He skips to my hand and nibbles on my fingers. I attempt to pet him with my other hand. He puffs up and hisses at me.

" Fuck you! "

I'm left absolutely stunned. He just cursed at me!

" Excuse me? "

He squawks at me and flys away.

" Well, screw you too bird. "

He taunts me from a tree branch, hopping around puffing his feathers.

" My my, such colorful language. "

I know that voice. I whip around to see Nadia behind me, I didn't even hear her approach me.

" Do you know that bird? "

She sighs.

" Yes, I believe he was my husband's. "

She doesn't look as if she was fond of his bird.

" He always had such a temper. " she sighs.

" Your husband or the bird? "

She looks shocked, I probably shouldn't have said that. I attempt to apologize, but she laughs.

" I believe both, if possible. "

She pulls a chair from the table to sit in.

" I believe I have found a friend of yours. "

She looks to the side were lo and behold, Candlewick emerges from a bush. I think he goes out of his way to give me a hard time.

" How has your time here been? Are you comfortable? "

My hands fidget underneath the table.

*Pick*

*Pick*

*Pick*

" I've been fine, I don't have any complaints. "

Her voice is so soothing, she's so easy to listen to. She looks to the sky and smiles.

" It's been a while since I've gotten a chance to sit out here, every time I have a moment to myself another problem arises. "

When was the last time she had a day to herself?

" You could take the day off, go into town, I'm sure nothing too horrible could happen. Worse case scenario a painting falls over. "

She looks at me with wide eyes. Then looks to the side, concentrating. A small sound leaves her mouth with finality.

" Then we shall go to town. "

" We? "

The streets are bustling with noise as people start their day. Shouting and laughing become white noise, almost unnoticed. Almost. Nadia had wrapped herself in a purple shaw to blend in with the crowd. I was dressed ths same, I had no title to draw unwanted eyes, well other than being a thief in that one specific market that I will be sure to avoid, but that's beside the point. I have an ( nearly ) blank slate.

I point out stalls with strange oddities that I had never seen before. The shiny items beckon for me like a siren calling to an unsuspecting sailor. We visit meny vendors selling high quality goods, Nadia has told me at least a billion times that i can get whatever I wanted. Yes, I saw meny nice things. And also yes, I picked up said meny things to admire them with my hands. Feeling the bumps and ridges on everything. But I had no need or want for such things, they're just nice to look at. Time flew by without acknowledgement, we had shared a lunch in some high-rated inn. We had made small talk about restaurants from home.

" So, the owners knew the food was unhealthy? And they sold it anyway? "

I laugh at Nadia's confusion.

" Yep. But everyone still loved McDonald's, as bad as it was. "

I pick at my food before me. I had a plate of some sort of spiced meat drowned in a sauce. I ate most of it but I honestly wasn't all that hungry. I don't want to say we were running out of things to do, but it felt as if we were. There was much more to be done, just not today.

" What do we do now? "

Nadia readjusts her shaw to ensure anonymity, but her eyes never leave me. Once she is satisfied with her disguise she takes my hand into hers and smiles.

" Why don't I take you to a tailor to get yourself outfitted to your preference. I'd love to treat you as a thank you, I haven't had this much fun in a while. "

*Pick*

*Pick*

*Pick*

I tear at my nails with uncertainty.

" Are you sure? Do we have time? "

She smiles that beautiful smile once again.

" With certainly. "

So Nadia took me to see a tailor.

She expressed mild worry, as she had never been to this peticular store before. She has high standards for such things, and wanted it to be perfect or it was just a waste of time in her opinion. Once we enter and observe the room to be empty other then the man at the front desk, she removed her "disguise". Two things happen.

First, the man behind the front counter froze for a moment and stuttered his welcome slightly. I bet he didn't count on seeing the Countess in his store today. Secondly, I wondered how the hell is her hair so perfect after being covered and walking around all day.

We are each lead to a room to be measured. I stood on a small platform in the middle of said room, it was filled with mannequins and long rolls of patterned fabric. The room was filled yet was still orderly. I had never been measured before, I just grabbed clothes from my local Walmart and called it a day. I felt as if it was mildly invasive but that was to be expected. Once the man was done he lead me to an even larger room with clothes, he told me they were my size. Or at least close too.

I'm surrounded by suits, evening gowns, and robes. I try on a dress or two. But I don't keep them, i'm not really a dress person. Makes me feel silly for some reason, but the idea of wearing one is nice I guess. If I did wear dresses, i want it to "feel" like me. I don't want to look in the mirror and see someone else. I don't quite know what I'm looking for, as of now I am simply grabbing clothes and trying them on. But nothing really sticks. Not until I find a white blouse. It has puffy sleeves that cinch at the wrists and a simple v-line collar. I back track through the clothes till I find a pair of very dark pants, I try both on. I tuck the blouse in for a cleaner look, yet it's still a bit plain. I search the clothing racks for something to add. A mannequin catches my eye. A leather underbust corset lies wrapped around the wooden waist. I trace my fingers along the strings. This will work.

I stand in front of a tall mirror admiring my work. My white blouse tucked into my pants, then wrapped in the corset. Dark brown leather boots with a pair of slightly lighter half chaps, for a bit of pizzazz. I look at myself in the mirror, admiring my work. Maybe I should find a pretty collar for Candlewick, so he can be fancy too. But that will have to wait, I have a bigger problem at the moment. I need to leave the changing room.

What if my outfit is wrong? What if it's not nice enough? My hand hangs over the doorknob shaking, trembling. I don't understand why I am so hesitant to be seen. Maybe I don't want to be judged. Candlewick leans against my boot, he's either comforting me or demanding attention. Regardless, it calms me. I place my hand on the doorknob, no turning back now.

I'd like to say that the changing room door creaked horrendously loud causing strangers to look at me, and that they turned their heads away with disgust. And that some random woman shielded her baby's eye in fear of it crying because of me. But that's not what happened. The door didn't make a sound, no creaking. It was silent. And the room wasn't filled with potentially upset people, it was nearly empty. Filled only Nadia and a man measuring her clothing size. The tailor barely notices me, Nadia on the other hand definitely saw me.

* Pick *

* Pick *

* Pick *

She smiles but says nothing.

I wait around awkwardly until she was satisfied with browsing the store. She waves her hand to dismiss the tailor. He leaves for a few minutes before returning with a few rolls of fabric.

" I summoned a carriage for us while you were changing, it's late in the afternoon and I don't want to tire you out. Our duties are not yet finished. "

*Pick*

*Pick*

*Pick*

" Ok. "

I respond in a small quiet voice, my nerves always get the best of me.

I had never been in a carriage before this. The seats were plush and soft, very inviting. They were a beautiful crimson, like a fine wine. Total upgrade from the hard dirty seats on the bus.

She pat the seat beside her, signaling me to sit. She gently lays her hand on mine, her rings feeling cool on my warm skin.

" You look beautiful in your new clothes, I only hope you shall allow me to spoil you in the future again. "

My face flushes red, I'm not used to such treatment. It made me feel weird. Tingly? I felt warm, I felt . . .

Loved.

The ride wasn't very long, so we were back by sunset. Nadia was pleased that nothing horrific had happened with her temporary absence, as was I. Nadia told me to have some fun before dinner so she sent me on my way. I wasn't really sure what to do, so I just wondered around. I walked with a bounce in my step, I felt like I was shinning.

I feel great here. At home, I felt like I was just some other ordinary teen. No one paid any mind to me. But here? I think I can make something good for myself.

I went to Lucio to show him my new outfit, he was expectedly unimpressed by the lack of "flair and gold ". But he did say it was nice. I told him about my trip with Nadia, and about the new things I had seen. He seemed sour, grumbling how Nadia never took him to town.

We had laid on the rug by the grand window and talked for a long time. He talked about a "red market" and how he loved to romp around and buy whatever he wanted. And I talked about video games I had played and movies I had seen. Lucio seemed quite content with himself, he practically melted into the carpet while I told him the plot of a Disney movie. His eyes were soft and his breathing was steady.

He looked happy.

I obviously couldn't stay forever as I had a dinner to attend, I bid fairwell to Lucio and left. I felt him follow me, although I couldn't see him i knew he was there. I found his dogs lounging about toward the staircase that lead to his side of the palace. I made sure to scratch their ears as I passed. I think Lucio stayed with his dogs because of a sudden feeling of loneliness that came apon me as I left.

I enter the grand dinning room to see Asra and Nadia talking amongst themselves.

" I'm sorry I'm a little bit late, I got lost. "

"With time you will be acoctomed with the layout. What matters is you are here now."

Nadia reassures me that all is well. Thank God, this place is a damn labyrinth.

The long table welcoming, Nadia sits at an end with an empty chair to her side. I'll be between her and Asra. Me and Asra haven't really talked much and I had a few questions. Nothing of importance, I'm just curious of his character. We are brought meals one by one. First a light salad, then some butterd bread, and finally a spiced fish. I'm not really a salad person. I don't prefer it with ranch, although most people do. And I hate croutons. Yes, croutons. But this salad? The one before me?

Heavenly. It was lightly peppered and had a dressing that wasn't overpowering.

This place is awsome.

We had nice conversations about our pasts. I shared pleasant memories of a rainbow xylophone I had when I was young. Asra spoke of adventures to far away places. And Nadia of her childhood home. Eventually Nadia got on the topic of her late husband. No one seemed somber when his death was brought up. Asra briefed Nadia on their recent findings regarding said event. I know it's not my place to ask, but I need to know. Half of his room is suffocated by ash. I want to know why. How do I ask this in a nice way?

" How did he pass away? "

Nailed it.

Asra didn't look uncomfortable, but he didn't look thrilled that I asked.

" 3 years ago my husband was murdered by his personal doctor. "

Time to ask another dumb question.

" His doctor? Was he sick? "

Asra answers my second question.

" He was affected by the red plague. It killed hundreds of innocents. Noone afflicted survived. "

They looked sad now.

" Meny of the deaths, were of people I knew. "

Hundreds? That's horrible. Was it because of the lack of modern medicine? How were so meny lives lost?

" We are still on a man hunt for the man responsible for my husband's death. Dr. Julian Devorak. "

. . .

I pause. Murder? No, not possible. He was so kind to me, to Asra. But Asra is looking for him? We saw him yesterday?

I look at him next to me, we lock eyes. The look he's giving me tells me to stay silent. Dont say anything.

So I said nothing.

[percervall]

you're the sweetest thing (I ever did see)

Pairing: Darwin Núñez x fem!reader Words: 1764 Warnings: flirting, kissing, making out A/N: This started as @kostasstsimikass and I exchanging fic ideas based on the new kit photoshoot and it snowballed from there in my Google docs. Oops.

In which Darwin needs a little push to finally talk to the pretty stylist

---

Following the photographer’s instructions was not just hard because of the language this time around. Darwin had to keep asking Luis to repeat them in Spanish and even that barely registered whenever he saw the swaying of her ponytail behind the photographer. 

“Are you even listening?” Luis asked him when he noticed Darwin looking away for the hundredth time in the span of a minute. 

“Hmm?” Darwin replied, tearing his eyes away from the pretty stylist currently knelt on the floor as she hemmed Harvey’s trousers. 

“Guess that’s a no,” the Colombian chuckled. 

“Sorry,” Darwin mumbled, feeling his cheeks heat up in shame at getting caught staring. Luis clapped him on the shoulder with a grin.

“No worries, mate. She’s cute, you should ask her out.” 

Darwin’s response died on his lips as the photographer called for their attention once more. 

+

She couldn’t help but look over in the direction of the monitor or the set as the photographer gave his directions. The corners of her mouth tugged up involuntarily at the sound of laughter as butterflies flitted around in her stomach when she peeked past the photographer and saw Darwin’s body shake with laughter. 

“He’s single, you know,” a voice came from behind her, startling her so much she dropped the hanger she was fidgeting with. 

“Fucking hell, Trent..” she muttered, bending down to pick it back up, “You really gotta stop sneaking up on people,” she added with a glare. Trent just smirked and shrugged. 

“Just sayin’,” he replied. 

“Don’t know what you’re on about,” she mumbled, cheeks burning at the fact that she’d been caught checking out one of his teammates. The chuckle he gave her in reply only made her feel more embarrassed. 

“I’m gonna… go and do my job,” she managed to utter as she walked back to the rack holding all the outfits for today’s shoot, silently willing for the floor to open and swallow her whole. 

“We gotta get them together. How has she not seen the way he looks at her?” Andy commented as he came standing next to his teammate.  

“I know, they’ve been making eyes at each other since the summer,” Trent said as he stuffed his hands in the pockets of his coat. Both defenders were quiet for a moment as they watched the Liverpool striker and the stylist continue sneaking glances at one another.

“I have an idea that might just work,” Andy said, face lit up with mischief. Trent’s face broke out in a matching grin as Andy shared his plan in hushed tones.

“Do I even wanna know what youse two are up to?” Jordan asked as he walked past them, an eyebrow raised in suspicion. 

“Nothing to worry about Hendo,” Andy replied, sharing a look with Trent who nodded in agreement. The Liverpool captain sighed, shaking his head as he watched the two defenders walk away.  

+

She was busy putting all the accessories used in the shoot back in their cases when she heard the unmistakable voice of Andy outside of the storage room. 

“Come on lad, your mother raised you better than that. She’s been doing the heavy lifting all day.” 

Her eyebrows knitted together in confusion as she turned around, seeing Andy and Trent push Darwin forward with a box of the new kit in his arms before shutting the door behind him. 

“What-.. Robbo!” Darwin said as he stumbled. She was quick to grab hold of the box in an attempt to steady him, fingers brushing against his. A spark of something made her pull her hands back as if burnt, looking up at him as he dropped the box. She saw something like shock flash across his eyes and for a brief moment she wondered whether he had felt it too. He quickly broke eye contact, bending down to lift the box back up and placing it on the table to her right.

“Sorry. My friends are silly,” Darwin said, carefully forming his lips around the syllables. She couldn’t help but chuckle.

“It’s okay. Thank you for helping,” she replied. 

Darwin nodded and walked back to the door, his heart in his throat. He couldn’t deny the very obvious spark he’d felt when their hands had brushed. Had she felt it too? She must’ve, right? He shook his head, trying to make sense of the jumbled mess of thoughts and feelings, reaching for the doorknob and fully expecting the door to open. Darwin tried again, but to no avail; the door remained closed. It was then that a realisation dawned on him.

“Hijo de puta,” he muttered under his breath, banging on the door, “Robbo! Open please!” 

“Ah sorry mate! Lost the key, we’re trying to find it. Just sit tight and uh, maybe get to know each other,” Andy shouted back. Darwin gave the door one more angry hit with his fist, resting his forehead against it. He felt her hand on his shoulder, her touch unsure but wanting to offer some consolation. Darwin turned around and looked at her, watched her words die on her lips. He couldn’t stop looking at her lips, remembering the way they would tug up into a smile. Her tongue darted out to wet the bottom one and he could swear the ground underneath his feet shifted. 

“You-..” she started, clearing her throat, “you’ve got an eyelash-.. Here, let me.” Her touch was so gentle as she brushed a finger over his cheekbone, Darwin was afraid to move. He had to refrain himself from leaning into it.

“Make a wish,” she whispered, holding out her finger. Darwin couldn’t help the quirk of the corner of his mouth as he closed his eyes before blowing the eyelash off her finger. 

“What did you wish for?” she asked, looking up at him with a twinkle in her eyes. He chuckled and shook his head.

“If I say, the wish won’t come true, no?” His reply earned him a chuckle in return as she shrugged. The movement caused a strand of hair to fall onto her face. Before he knew what was happening, Darwin brushed it behind her ear, fingers lingering as they came to rest on her jaw.

“Muy linda,” he whispered, more to himself really. 

“Tú también,” she replied, voice soft and hushed. Darwin was pretty sure his heart skipped a beat at her reply. He hadn’t meant for the compliment to come out, let alone for her to hear it. But her replying in Spanish, in the language he longed to hear most days, just to be reminded of home, made his heart soar. She wrapped a tentative hand around his wrist, his hand still against her cheek. He could see her eyes darting back and forth between his eyes and his mouth and felt like he was being pulled closer towards her, like a bee would be pulled to the  prettiest of flowers. He saw her eyes flutter closed as their faces were mere inches apart, lips parting, and his breath caught in his throat. 

“Can-... May I?” he asked, voice barely above a whisper, his forehead resting against hers. Her eyes remained closed, teeth sinking into her bottom lip as she nodded. Darwin gently lifted her face with the knuckle of his forefinger before brushing his lips against hers. The contact was only brief and faint, but it felt like someone had lit sparklers inside his soul. She made the tiniest whimpering noise when he pulled back, sending his heart into overdrive. Her fingers fisted the material of his jersey as she pulled herself closer to him, chasing his lips. It made Darwin stumble backwards every so slightly, now leaning against the door. Their lips found each other once more and an urgency seemed to take hold of her. The kiss was no longer chaste; it was a slow burning fire, an admission of a shared longing that preceded today. Darwin moved a hand from her face to around her waist, pulling her body flush against his. Her hips rolled against his and it nearly brought him to his knees as her perfume surrounded him, the mix of fruit and something so uniquely her instantly reminded him of summer. 

Darwin tentatively licked against the seam of her lips, a quiet moan escaping him at the sound she made when she parted her lips to let him in. Breaking the kiss, Darwin moved his hands down to the backs of her thighs, picking her up without any hesitation before spinning them around so her back now rested against the door. She sighed into the kiss when their mouths found each other again, her legs hooked around his hips. The kiss took on a slow urgency, the both of them needing to be closer still. Darwin couldn’t help but smile against her skin as his lips moved to her neck, hearing her gasp as he pressed a delicate kiss right below her jaw. 

“Darwin-...” she sighed, not finishing her thought but instead letting out the tiniest moan as he gently sucked on a spot behind her ear. The sound went straight to his groin.

“I’d love to discover all the noises you make, hermosa, but there are too many people outside,” he murmured, face still half-hidden against her neck. He heard how her breathing stuttered at his admission, couldn’t help the smirk at her gasp when his hands found their way under her jumper, just above the waistband of her jeans, as his fingers traced slow patterns across her skin. She directed his mouth back to hers, kissing him with a hunger that told him all he needed to know –that she felt the same way. 

Darwin was quick to realise someone was about to open the door when he heard the key in the lock. He carefully lowered her, but held her against him as he kissed her again. The sound of wolf whistles and hollering finally broke them apart. Darwin looked down at her, saw her bite her lips once more before she reached up to kiss his cheek.

“Come find me after the shoot,” she whispered in his ear before turning around to leave the closet. Darwin felt the corner of his mouth tug up in a smile as he watched her go. His teammates cajoled and teased him, but he didn’t care. Most of their words went straight over his head anyway, but he knew they were teasing him. At least now he had motivation to remain focussed on the photographer: the quicker the shoot went, the quicker he’d get to see her again. 

The end of season exhaustion combined with end of year teacher exhaustion turned writing this into a marathon, not a sprint. This fic would not have seen the light of day without @kostasstsimikass and @emilielfc -girls I love you more than I can put into words. Thank you for always feeding the brain rot

Please let me know what you think, whether it's just an assortment of emojis or a keyboard smash: I treasure both equally

Wrote this as part of a kisses challenge I’m taking part in this year. Feel free to send in a request or suggestions!

[certifiedlovergirlsstuff]

✍🏻The Attic✍🏻

glimpses into my google docs where ideas and drafts sit until they flourish or collect cobwebs. you can ask questions and add input on certain wips you're interested in. will update from time to time.

idea from @websterss

avatar (haven’t thought of a title name yet): growing up surrounded only by omatikaya you’re startled when you see the chief’s children interacting with a…foreign being.

spider socorro x omatikaya fem!reader (platonic) sully kids x fem!reader (platonic) fluff. just growing up fluff. sneak peek: “i’m sp- spid-der! hello!” he stuttered a bit on his name. he even did the i see you gesture and managed to get through the greeting fairly well. “your… name is?”

neteyam (haven’t thought of a title name yet): your family of three is living a good life. maybe it’s time for a new addition.

aged up!neteyam x omatikaya fem!reader fluff. lovely fluff for the lovely boy sneak peek: “ah, just like your sempu (dad),” now you gave a firmer shake on her shoulder, “up, up. long day of training and chores ahead of you. both you and your sempu should be used to this by now.”

quill (haven’t thought of a title name yet): you and peter quill were friends in elementary school. but then one day he was gone and hasn’t returned in forty years, until today.

peter quill x fem!reader fluff mostly, some angst might be thrown in there. sneak peek: “peter’s eyes widened and then yours did as well once you registered the words that slipped free. you jerked your hand away, but peter managed to catch it in time to keep you close. now you just stared at peter as his cheeks started to burn red.”

gotg (haven’t thought of a title name yet): before it was the guardians of the galaxy running around, it was just you and peter. and seeing peter constantly with different people each night screwed with your heart. when he does something stupid you might let slip that…you have affections.

peter quill x fem!reader angst with a splash of fluff. sneak peek: “the two of you watched each other in the stewing silence. peter’s eyes set on his ruined shirt and yours set on him with a frown coming to your face. not in the mood to raise your voice more than you already did since you’re recovering from a cold, you simply walked away.”

party foul pt2: ghostface is back but he’s not the main priority. ethan and you have a first date.

ethan landry x fem!reader fluff. fluffy puppy dog boy. sneak peek: “I swear! If I open this door and neither of you is dressed, there will be… a punishment.” You couldn’t help the slight chuckle as you heard Chad’s voice trailing off with his threat.

speak now (steve version): an unexpected wedding invitation ends up in your mail and you make the decision to go. wise choice?

-steve harrington x fem!reader -angst. fluff. it’s a taylor swift song fic! sneak peek: “you weren’t invited.” “wow. okay, little harsh, robs.” again she shook her hands along with her head. wavy strands hitting her roses cheeks. “no, i mean, you weren’t supposed to get an invitation. like at all. you weren’t on the list, i would know. i helped steve mail the ones for his side of the family.”

chad,reader,ethan (haven’t thought of a title name yet): you get drunk at a halloween party and you speak your unfiltered thoughts to your two guys friends.

-ethan landry x fem!reader x chad meeks-martin  -fluff. sexual talk. no actual smut (just can’t do it) sneak peek: “chad, can we do cowgirl when we get to your place?” more loose giggles spilled. chad just smirk, “maybe another night, darling.” “ooo, so i see my offer was taken?” ethan started to lead your trio out the door, your body pressed to his side. “ah, may-maybe. we can- we can talk again tomorrow.”

dynasty pt2: a moment in the spirit tree

-mom omatikaya!reader x neteyam  -fluff. some tiny angst. sneak peek: “Just a second, eyes closing involuntarily and a shaky sigh trembles your lips. It’s been so long since you heard that tiny voice and heard the use of mommy. He only calls you mom or mother when he joins on the raids, trying to seem more grown than he is.”

[maymemoria]

Underlined by Ana May, a collection of memorable quotes & segments

Book Title: Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life 

Author: Lulu Miller

Quotes:

“Chaos was our only ruler. This massive swirl of dumb forces was that made us, accidentally, and would destroy us, imminently.” 

“You don’t matter (...) so live as you please (...) While other people don’t matter, either, treat them like they do.”

“Nowhere is the sky so blue, the grass so green, the sunshine so bright, the shade so welcome, as right here, now, today.”

“It is the will of man that shapes the fates.”

“It’s a hard lot being a human (...) You walk around with the knowledge that the world is fundamentally uncaring, that no matter how hard you work there is no promise of success, that you are competing against billions, that you are vulnerable to the elements, and that everything you ever love will eventually be destroyed.” 

“A category is at best a proxy, at worst, a shackle.” 

“We barely know the world around us, even the simplest things under our feet. That we have been wrong before and we will be wrong. That the true path to progress is paved not with certainty but doubt, with being “open to revision.”

“Out there, encoded in the cold math of Chaos, there is a sort of cosmic justice after all.” 

“People will never exchange comfort for truth.” 

“In every organism at which you gaze, there is complexity you will never comprehend.”

“Was not reluctant to use a cannon to swat a fly.”

“Ignorance is the most delightful science in the world because it is acquired without labor or pains and keeps the mind from melancholy.”

“To wonder about the reality waiting behind our assumptions”

Segments:

• There was one called “The Eagle and the Blue-Tailed Skink” (don’t think skunk, it’s a lizard), in which an eagle swoops down and nips off the tail of a blue-tailed skink. The wounded skink, in vengeance, scurries up to the eagle’s nest and devours a bunch of her eggs, thinking, ‘There is just enough meat in these eggs to make me a new tail.’ And on they go. The eagle swooping down bite off a new tail, the lizard scurrying up to gobble more eggs, on and on, neither opponent ever truly vanquished, for there was always “meat enough in the tail to make… more eggs, and meat enough in  the eggs to make another blue tail.” It seems to me like a meditation on the futility of revenge, or perhaps a gory illustration of the most damning laws of physics, the law of conservation of mass: mass can neither be created nor destroyed.

• A statement in a National Institute of Mental Health report that “considerable evidence suggests positive psychological benefits for people who believe their future will be rosier than they have any right to expect. Such optimism keeps people in a positive mood, motivates them to work towards future goals, fosters creative, productive work, and gives them a sense of being in control of their destiny.”

• The Dandelion Principle: in some contexts a dandelion might be considered a weed to be culled; in others it’s a valuable medicinal herb to be cultivated. (...) To some people a dandelion might look like a weed, but to others that same plant can be so much more. To a herbalist, it’s medicine - a way of detoxifying the liver, clearing the skin, and strengthening the eyes. To a painter it’s a pigment; to a hippie, a crown; a child, a wish. To a butterfly, it’s sustenance; to a bee, a mating bed; to an ant, one point in a vast olfactory atlas. 

———————

available on google docs:

[tiny-banana-time]

Ooo, okay, I’m a glutton for punishment - tell me about Vid Message for Kaidan, please.

I too am a glutton for punishment, so it doesn't come as a surprise that this is one of the older drafts I have for a part of the story I'm nowhere near starting 🙃 (Old enough that it's written in a different tense, and the google doc is a different background color lol)

Anyway, this initially started as a response to the absolutely terrible canon conversation on Horizon - because it's so out of character for Jay that I needed to figure out how the hell he would apologize for that. And that's where the two Horizon docs ended up spawning from!

So yeah, snippet under the cut. I plan on re-writing this to match whatever I end up deciding actually happens on Horizon, but here's part of the current draft that'll end up getting tweaked:

His omnitool pinged some twenty minutes later. Kaidan ignored it at first, even knowing that the list of possible contacts was significantly limited while on Horizon, then sighed, knowing that whoever had reached out must have something damn important to say. Blanket pulled down to reveal his wrist, he turned the lights on just enough to get his bearings.

Kaidan sat up and rubbed his eyes, his stubble scratching the palms of each hand as he worked the exhaustion out. If he can't sleep, he might as well work, right?

Pulling up the interface, he navigated to his messages more by muscle memory than sight, and opened the new message without checking the sender. He pressed play and waited. 

Kaidan… Hi.

That snapped him to attention. Eyes properly open now, he looked down and saw Jay recording himself in what appeared to be his quarters. 

Jay. A new message from Jay. That miserable kind of anger welled up inside Kaidan, and he moved to close the message when Jay continued.

I guess I'll start by apologizing. 

He paused the message instead, struggling to process. After all that was said earlier today, he should have expected this. Though he supposed it had been a while since this was even a possibility…

Deep breaths, Alenko. Deep breaths. Give him a chance. It's a recording; you can stop it any time. He exhaled fully, looking back at the man on the screen. You're supposed to be dead, Jay…

Ignoring the way his hand shook, Kaidan pressed play again.

First, sorry I'm recording this drunk. It's… been a day, and while I needed to do this, I couldn't get a word out when I tried sober. 

Jay shot back what looked like a finger of whiskey and poured himself another.

Second, sorry if it looks like I'm drinking too much. Metabolism is even worse since I was… rebuilt…

The last word came out with a vitriol Kaidan hadn't expected. 

If you thought it was hard to get drunk with biotics, try adding whatever fucking cybernetics they fitted me with into the mix. Swear I have to practically hook an IV up to get properly wasted. 

Another shot, another pour. 

Third, the actual important apology here. Reason I'm doing this…

Jay sighed in a way that exuded utter defeat, and Kaidan honestly couldn't remember ever seeing him like this. The night before the mutiny came close: finding Shepard punching his locker and sinking to the floor. 

But this… this was different. 

And it was his fault. 

Fuck, sorry, even drunk this is still hard to do. Heh, apology four before I've even done three… 

Kaidan watched as Jay looked up from his glass and made eye contact, the bags under his eyes a deep bruise that must have been curated over the months he'd apparently been awake. The tears Kaidan saw mirrored his own now.

I'm sorry, Kaidan. For the way I handled… well, basically everything involving you since I came back. Today included. The way I spoke to you was… calculated? I'm not sure. I was trying so damn hard to just keep it together that I ended up throwing myself into that fake Commander demeanor I use sometimes, like I was speaking with a stranger… But I felt like the stranger today. There you were, somehow two months older, and two years older. I had to remind myself that you saw me differently now, even before Cerberus came up.

[druid-delaluna]

may i ask what happens between you, the fandom, and the crew if you're comfortable recounting? im thinking about getting back into eddsworld after a rocky start in the fandom, but if stuff is worse then..

I want to say firstly if you want to join the fandom don't let my views or story sway you in any way. It's all under the cut please don't go harassing people on my behalf or because you feel you're doing anything good.

A lot of people were victims, including myself of the crew (and by crew I mean those active in the Eddsworld discord before the Patreon change) aggressive and just mean behavior and actions. I'm talking a lot of mad shit spoken, arguments, fights, petty ass drama, and in my case. A lie created by Oblivion/Neep/Prince Jayden to have me kicked from the server. (from what I understand Collin/Jon and a few other crew members were involved as well)That I leaked the Patreon when I never had paid for it. I never had access to it. Either they knew this and didn't care or Bing forgot to mention old mods didn't have to pay for it. I really don't care who did it as most of them dislike me. They didn't like that I was quite blunt with my disapproval and had harsh opinions on their behavior and what was going on with the show. So since they couldn't actually just outright kick me, they figure getting me with this lie was good enough. Bing coming to apologize wasn't because he actually cared, it was more or less damage control pushed by another person, who I got all this information from. Then, you add in all the past grooming and SA crap that happened last summer. On top of these same people going to harass server members and their ex-friends. It is toxic, it is shameful. You think people who have done such bad things would wake up to the fact maybe you're the bad guy in this. You are doing terrible things for what? Your name on a show riddle with issues? Don't you have anything else going for you? I realize I'm tired, I got burnt out fighting and fighting for what I thought was the right thing but man I'm getting old myself I got a lot of opportunities elsewhere.

Regarding fandom, those very same people are now working on the show (SKL was involved too) so it's like I don't want to see them of course. So better I leave, block it all, and try to find some calm back in my fandom/internet life. As well as my own friends being targeted by them or by others over very petty nonsense. I feel bad that perhaps Jayden and the rest are targeting my friends cause of me, maybe they're trying to get at me. So leaving might make it easier on them. I'm not sure. There have been some awful harassment and bullying issues. The fact fandom rightfully opens the discussion of using fascism tropes with the red army but then ignores the rampant racism going on. Also since so many of the older fans are leaving, the younger ones are starting to repeat the same harmful discussions of irl vs show and using that dead man name to push their views.

(Take this next part with a hard grain of salt) Down to the fact that we might not know 100% what happen between Edd Gould and Cal from the google docs. But when I asked Matt about it he couldn't seem to tell us that Cal was an adult at the time of their relationship. I know England laws are different than the states but if you can't just say your friend was dating an adult and kinda avoiding the discussion something very weird going on.

Now if you wanna come back, just stick in your own lane, make your little friend groups, and just have fun is my best advice. Avoid these users as they are very twoface like the rest of the crew. During my time as curator and I got to see those masks drop when they realize you didn't suck up to them. It wasn't just me they acted like this with and I feel so bad for others they hurt to get the positions they have today. It wasn't fair and I understand why removing the one person who stood up to it all was in their mindset as they continue to harm others. I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt that maybe it was just all in my head but after finding out from one of them what really happen, it fucking disgusting why they did this. Hope this help explain why I left the fandom and why I dislike the crew so much.

UPDATE: 5/1/2023 As of today Oblivion and Neepin have reached out to apologize for their involvement and behavior towards me and others. I appreciate this and I'm glad they are coming to see what they did was very wrong.