#mushrooms aren’t for target practice

[maplewozapi]

"It’s a fae trap! Look out it’s a fae trap"

Fae trap? In my America? That’s just the wind

As a Native American lemme elaborate it’s-LITERALLY THE WIND get out of there it’s gonna get you

Don’t look at it, touch it, throw a rock at, god forbid you shoot an arrow at it you’ll be carried off to who knows where and then you’ll have to walk all the way back. It so inconvenient.

[avocadosharks]

starfruit

“You want to do what?!” 

Rosalina, still composed, tilts her head at the sudden outburst from Peach. “I want the Mushroom Kingdom to join the World of Cosmos under my rule,” she repeats. 

Peach hated how gentle her voice was- like she was talking to a screaming toddler rather than a respected princess that spent her entire life pouring her blood, sweat, and tears into growing this kingdom. She did it all herself and now Rosalina wants to take it from her? Hell no. 

“Very bold of a guest to come here and demand she takes my kingdom,” Peach responds, trying to match Rosalina’s level of cool. It didn’t work and she practically spat the words from her gritted teeth. It was rare for Peach to get so angry, but it was warranted. 

“I’m not demanding anything.”

“Kinda seems like it.”

“It’ll be temporary.”

Peach shoots up so fast her chair tips onto the floor and clatters. Rosalina doesn’t even blink, instead, her exposed eye follows Peach’s movement as she stands. “Bowser has been at war with the entire universe for years. Temporary could be months. Years. The Mushroom people need me, not because I’m a great ruler, but because I am their comfort. They won’t listen to you. Without me, they’ll be terrified.” 

“You’re not a great ruler, Peach.”

The princess blinks, mouth dropping slightly. First, she comes here and wants to take my kingdom and now she’s insulting me? 

“Excuse me?” Peach hates how her frame shrinks down a little. 

Roslina stands too and the air practically vibrates with her power. “I said you aren’t a great ruler. You’re new, Peach. I’ve been in this war against Bowser for decades and you’ve only gotten on his radar because you’re pretty- that’s why your kingdom is being targeted. The Mushroom Kingdom has barely been one since you took the throne and it will fall the second Bowser decides to use a star on you.”

“We’ve fought him off before. Multiple times.”

“Yes, with a plumber’s help while you sat in a cell,” Rosalina points out, smoothing out an invisible wrinkle in her flawless dress. “The Mushroom people are helpless against Bowser and your army needs the Luma’s abilities to protect them. Our people could be great together, but only one ruler is necessary.”

“You’re a jerk,” Peach hisses.

“No, I’m honest and it seems like no one has been honest with you, princess.” The way Rosalina said the word almost seemed like she was mocking her and Peach’s fingers curled into fists on the glass table. 

“I’m not giving you the Mushroom Kingdom.”

Rosalina’s shoulders rise briefly in a silent, but frustrated sigh. “Fine.” 

Peach waits for Rosalina to move to the doors, but she doesn’t. She doesn’t want to back down by leaving the room first so instead, Peach holds eye contact with the cosmic princess and searches her deadpan face. Despite the decades of ruling space, Rosalina looked as youthful as ever- her cyan eyes shimmering and swirling like they were their own galaxies. She had a tough exterior which drove Peach insane because no wonder why no one ever interacted with the World of Cosmos- their princess barely came down enough times to be socialized like a normal person. She was rude and stubborn, yet, Peach couldn’t help but acknowledge the respect she felt. Rosalina has been at this game for a while now. 

“Are you gonna leave?” Peach says. 

“No.”

No? “No…?” Peach repeats. 

“The Lumas are in danger if our kingdoms don’t join together and, even if you won’t do it to help your kingdom, I’ll do it to ensure the safety of mine,” Rosalina explains. Now, Peach felt the weight of guilt and embarrassment settle on her shoulders- the strain making her cheeks flush red. Rosalina notices and offers a pitiful smile. “It’s alright. I know you care about your people- you’re just worried.”

The understanding coming from her was giving Peach whiplash. She’s never met someone so condescending but caring before and it was getting under her skin.

“Worried doesn’t even begin to explain the emotions I feel right now.” 

“Well, princess, if you don’t mind I would like to stay here for a while,” Rosalina requests, finally moving around the table towards the large doors of the meeting room. Peach watches her with curious eyes flicking over her. 

“Why should I agree to that?”

“You shouldn’t,” Rosalina admits, but she turns to face Peach again with her hands folded in front of her, a slight smile on her face, “but I rarely leave the cosmos and it seems like some of your anxieties stem from the fact I’ll abuse your people when I rule them-”

“If you rule them- which you aren’t.”

Rosalina ignores her. “-and I want to show you that won’t be the case. Give me three days to change your mind, princess. I’ve been told I have a way of convincing people.”

There was a hidden purr in her words that sent a zap down Peach’s spine. She kept her composure though and turned her attention to the glass table, studying it like the answer would appear. 

“Three days, but you also have to let me convince you that the Mushroom Kingdom is strong by itself,” Peach says. Rosalina pauses, those cyan eyes tracing Peach’s face smoothly. 

“I look forward to working with you,” Rosalina agrees. 

“And I look forward to proving you wrong.”

The cosmic princess laughs and it sounds like a hundred stars twinkling, making Peach’s shoulders straighten in surprise and in slight pride. Peach watches as she spins swiftly, nodding down at the guards that open the door for her, and she doesn’t turn away until Rosalina turns the corner of the hallway, disappearing into Peach’s castle. 

“She called you pretty,” Toad whispered from the wall behind Peach. She glances over her shoulder and, although it was said in the context of Bowser, the thought of being perceived as pretty by someone else made Peach’s heart swell. In a world full of mushroom people, turtles, dinosaurs, and talking animals- beauty wasn’t a common thing to this universe and Peach never accepted it as a compliment from Bowser. But, from another human, it was different. 

“She did,” Peach mutters. Maybe, just for three days, Peach would let herself be pretty.

[mobbothetrue]

[WRITING PROMPT] posted by user JoeKentry in the writing prompts subreddit:

Zombies cannot swim. But they will attempt to follow targets in boats by walking into the ocean. Centuries after the cure was found, groups of zombies are surfacing on the other end of the Atlantic. You are one of the first to be cured, and have to adapt to this new society.

Prompt response by me:

The last thing you remember is tripping. You were always clumsy, sure, but you had hoped that in a life-or-death situation, your survival instincts would overcome your intrinsic clumsiness.

Apparently, that wasn’t the case. You’re pretty sure you hit your head on the sidewalk. The spot still aches, even though they tell you it’s been centuries.

God. Centuries. You’re hoping someone you know will turn up in one of the future zombie pods— one of the zombie pods that arrives while you’re still alive. Probably. There might be someone you know in this hospital, you haven’t been allowed out of your room yet. Something something, observing your system, something something, standard procedure.

Your hair has been growing back in. They still haven’t let you look in a mirror— you can make out a vague reflection in the window of your room, provided you manage to ignore the impossible cityscape behind it. Your face still doesn’t look like you, from what you can tell. Maybe it isn’t you. Maybe this is what your brain has melted into, a kind delusion left to what’s left of you as your body shambles around what was once your home.

You try not to think too hard about that.

What you don’t need a mirror to see is enough, anyway. Your arms were in casts, when you first woke up. It had seemed reasonable, at first, and then odd as you were given time to think about it— centuries in the future and they still needed plain ol’ fibreglass. Well. It was mostly for your comfort, turns out. Both familiarity in what you knew, and, well, you’ll never forget when you got your casts changed. You’re just glad that it was growing back.

You remain sitting for a while, staring out your window. It’s so different from anything you’ve ever known. You’re not sure if you’re glad that there was a cure. Maybe you would have preferred a bullet to the head as you crawled your way onto the beaches. Not that you’re suicidal, you never have been, but...

One of the orderlies gently opens the door, carrying a tray of food. At least hospital food is better in the future. You remember visiting your dad in the hospital once, and buying mushroom soup from the cafeteria. It was practically a solid.

This is fresh, perfectly cooked food. Is a salad cooking? Bread is, at least, bread and the cup of mushroom soup on your plate. You still aren’t allowed meat. You’re not sure if you’ll ever eat meat. Everything still tastes a bit like blood. Psychological, they tell you, it’ll go away, but it hasn’t yet.

The orderly leaves. You eat your food. You stare out the window for a while longer. What will you do out there? What will you see? Who will you meet?

You lie back down, and close your eyes. It’s so much easier to do that now, compared to when you first woke up. Breathing is easier too, and just to savour it you take as deep a breath as you can. It’s something you haven’t done in centuries, apparently.

Maybe they have a cure for clumsiness, here in the future. Maybe you’ll never trip again. Either way, you aren’t planning on ever wearing shoes with shoelaces again. Closing your eyes, you try to sleep with that thought, with the idea of being supernaturally graceful, like a ballerina.

Instead you dream of blue, blue, blue. You dream of black. You dream of blood in the water. You dream of creatures that would eat you whole. You dream of eating creatures whole. You dream of millions of tons of pressure crushing you, you dream of drowning again and again.

You dream of teeth tearing into your arm, of infection spreading up your throat.

You won’t remember any of this when you wake up. The last thing you remember is tripping.

[ichhya]

How to Choose Wall Lamp for Living Room Light?

Looking for the best wall lamp for living room cool lighting in your room? This guide covers everything from lamp styles and materials to energy efficiency and placement tips. Create a modern, inviting space with the right sitting room lamp light! Lighting is one of the most important aspects of interior design, especially in a space as central as the living room. A well-chosen wall lamp for living room lighting can do more than just illuminate your space—it can add style, create ambiance, and even make your room feel larger and more inviting. Whether you're looking to complement your modern décor or you need practical lighting for specific tasks, selecting the right wall-mounted lighting is essential. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore how to choose the perfect wall lamp for living room, focusing on cool light to give your space a fresh and contemporary feel. From understanding the basics of cool light to detailed tips on styles, placement, and energy efficiency, this home gadget guide will ensure you find the ideal wall lamp to enhance your living room.

Why Wall Lamps are Essential for Living Room Lights?

When it comes to illuminating your living room, wall lamps are often the unsung heroes. Unlike overhead lights that can sometimes be too harsh, or floor lamps that take up valuable space, wall lamps for living room lighting strike a perfect balance. They add light where you need it, create a cozy atmosphere, and contribute to the overall design of the room. Here are some key reasons why wall lamps are a must-have for your living room: - Space-Saving: Wall-mounted lighting is perfect for smaller living rooms where floor and table space is limited. By installing a wall lamp for living room, you free up space for furniture and décor while still achieving the lighting you need. - Focused Lighting: Wall lamps can provide targeted illumination for specific areas in your living room. Whether it's a reading nook, a gallery wall, or a cozy seating area, the right wall lamp design for the living room can make a big difference. - Style Enhancement: Modern wall lamps for living rooms aren’t just functional—they’re also a key part of your interior design. With a variety of styles, materials, and finishes to choose from, you can find a wall lamp that complements your décor and adds a touch of elegance or modernity to your space. Now that we’ve established the importance of wall lamps for living room spaces, let’s dive into how to choose the perfect one for your home. Understanding Cool Light for Your Living Room When selecting a wall lamp for living room, one of the first decisions you’ll need to make is the type of light you want. While warm light can create a cozy, intimate atmosphere, cool light is often preferred for living rooms that aim for a bright, clean, and modern look. Cool light, typically ranging from 4000K to 6500K on the color temperature scale, produces a bright white or blueish light. Here’s why cool light might be the right choice for your living room: - Modern Aesthetics: Cool light pairs perfectly with contemporary or minimalist designs. It enhances clean lines, brightens the room, and creates a sense of openness. - Focus and Clarity: Cool light helps you stay alert and focused, making it ideal for spaces where you read, work, or engage in detailed tasks. - Crisp and Refreshing: If you want your living room to feel fresh and invigorating, cool light wall lamps will achieve that effect. This type of lighting can make your living room feel larger and more inviting, especially during the daytime. However, it’s essential to balance cool light with other lighting elements to avoid making the room feel too stark. Incorporating wall-mounted lighting for living room spaces with dimming options can give you more control over the ambiance. More Home Gadgets: Why Vintage Mushroom Lamp is so Popular in Home Decor? Best Gaming Room Setup Idea: What Gamer Needs New Nest Bedroom Gadgets to Satisfy Your Nights Types of Wall Lamps for Living Room There are several types of wall lamps for living room lighting, each offering unique benefits and design features. Whether you want something purely decorative or highly functional, there’s a wall lamp to meet your needs. Here are the most popular types of wall lamps that work well with cool light: - Sconce Wall Lamps: Sconces are one of the most popular wall lamp designs for living room spaces. They come in various styles, from traditional to modern, and can be installed to direct light upward, downward, or both. Sconce wall lamps are excellent for ambient lighting and can help spread cool light evenly throughout your living room. - Adjustable Wall Lamps: If flexibility is your priority, consider adjustable wall lamps for living room lighting. These lamps allow you to change the direction of the light, making them perfect for task lighting or highlighting specific areas of the room, such as artwork or a bookshelf. - LED Wall Lamps: For those who prioritize energy efficiency, LED wall lamps for living room spaces are the best choice. LEDs provide bright, cool light while consuming minimal energy. They also last longer than traditional bulbs, making them a cost-effective option. - Swing Arm Wall Lamps: Swing arm wall lamps are both stylish and functional. Their adjustable arms allow you to extend or retract the light source as needed, making them ideal for reading or task-oriented spaces. A swing arm wall lamp for living room spaces can also add a touch of industrial chic to your décor. - Decorative Wall Lamps: If your primary focus is style, consider decorative wall lamps for living room lighting. These lamps may not provide the most practical illumination, but they can enhance your room's aesthetic. Look for designs that complement your existing décor while providing the desired cool light. When choosing a wall lamp, consider how each type will impact your space in terms of both functionality and style. The right lamp should seamlessly blend with your room while meeting your lighting needs. Factors to Consider When Choosing a Wall Lamp for Living Room Selecting the perfect wall lamp for living room lighting requires careful consideration of several factors. Here’s what you need to think about: - Purpose of the Lighting: Are you looking for ambient lighting, task lighting, or accent lighting? The purpose of your wall-mounted lighting for living room spaces will dictate the type of lamp you choose. For example, sconce wall lamps are great for ambient lighting, while adjustable wall lamps are better for task lighting. - Size and Scale: The size of your wall lamp should match the scale of your living room and furniture. A small lamp might get lost in a large space, while an oversized lamp can overwhelm a smaller room. Ensure the lamp’s proportions are in harmony with your living room’s dimensions. - Style and Design: Your wall lamp should complement your living room’s style. Whether your home is modern, traditional, or eclectic, there’s a wall lamp design for living room spaces that will fit. Consider the lamp’s material, finish, and overall design to ensure it matches your décor. - Light Output and Brightness: The brightness of your wall lamp is crucial. A lamp that’s too dim won’t provide enough light, while one that’s too bright can be harsh. Look for lamps with adjustable brightness settings or select a bulb with the right lumen output for your space. - Placement and Installation: Where you install your wall lamp for living room is just as important as the lamp itself. Position your lamps at eye level or slightly above to avoid glare. Consider the layout of your room and how the light will interact with other elements, such as furniture and windows. if you are looking for a guide to install Power Bank, then click the link By considering these factors, you can find the best wall lamp for living room spaces that meet both your functional and aesthetic needs. Materials and Finishes for Wall Lamps The material and finish of your wall lamp for living room can significantly impact the overall look and feel of your space. Here are some popular options to consider: - Metal: Metal finishes, such as brushed nickel, chrome, or matte black, are perfect for modern wall lamps for living room spaces. These materials reflect cool light beautifully and add a sleek, contemporary touch to your room. - Glass: Glass shades can soften and diffuse cool light, creating a more even distribution of light throughout the room. Clear glass shades offer a crisp, clean look, while frosted glass provides a more muted, diffused light. - Fabric: While fabric shades are more commonly associated with warm lighting, they can still work well with cool light, particularly in neutral or light colors. Fabric shades can soften the intensity of cool light and add a touch of elegance to your living room. - Wood: For a more natural or rustic look, consider wall lamps with wooden elements. Wood can add warmth and texture to your living room, balancing out the coolness of the sunset light. This combination can create a unique and inviting atmosphere. When selecting materials and finishes for your wall lamp for living room, think about how they will complement your existing décor and how they will interact with cool light. You may like: Home Automation Ideas: Transform Your Living Space Why Sunset Lamp Is Big Trend in Home Lighting? Decorative Light Bulbs: How to Decor Your Home?

How to select Energy Efficiency and Bulb?

In today’s eco-conscious world, energy efficiency is a top priority when choosing lighting for your home. LED wall lamps for living room spaces are the best option for those who want to reduce energy consumption without sacrificing style or brightness. Here’s why LED bulbs are ideal for your living room wall lamps: - Energy Efficiency: LED bulbs use significantly less energy than traditional incandescent or halogen bulbs. By switching to LEDs, you can lower your electricity bills and reduce your carbon footprint. - Longevity: LED bulbs last much longer than traditional bulbs, often up to 25,000 hours or more. This means fewer replacements and lower maintenance costs over time. - Cool Light Options: LED bulbs are available in various color temperatures, making it easy to find the right cool light for your living room. Look for LEDs with a color temperature of 4000K to 6500K for that crisp, bright light. - Dimmable Options: Many LED wall lamps come with dimmable features, allowing you to adjust the brightness to suit your needs. This is particularly useful in a living room, where lighting needs can vary throughout the day. When selecting an LED bulb for your wall lamp for living room, pay attention to the lumen output (brightness) and color temperature (cool light). This will ensure you achieve the desired lighting effect while maximizing energy efficiency. Design Inspiration: Living Room Wall Lighting Ideas Looking for some inspiration? Here are a few living room wall lighting ideas to help you choose the perfect wall lamp: - Symmetry in Design: For a balanced and harmonious look, consider placing matching sconce wall lamps on either side of a mirror, artwork, or fireplace. This symmetrical design not only adds visual appeal but also evenly distributes cool light throughout the room. - Layered Lighting: Combine wall lamps for living room with other light sources, such as ceiling lights, floor lamps, and table lamps, to create a well-lit and dynamic space. Layered lighting adds depth and dimension to your room, making it feel more inviting and visually interesting. - Accent Lighting: Use adjustable wall lamps or swing arm wall lamps to highlight specific features in your living room, such as a gallery wall, a bookcase, or a decorative object. Accent lighting draws attention to these focal points while adding a layer of cool light. - Artistic Fixtures: Choose wall lamps that double as art pieces. Sculptural or uniquely designed lamps can serve as a focal point in your living room while providing the necessary illumination. Look for lamps with interesting shapes, textures, or finishes that complement your décor. These ideas can help you find the perfect wall lamp for living room spaces, ensuring your home is both stylish and well-lit. How to maintain Living Room wall Lamps? Once you’ve selected the perfect wall lamp for living room lighting, it’s essential to keep it in top condition. Proper maintenance ensures your lamp continues to function well and looks great for years to come. Here are some maintenance tips for your wall lamps: - Regular Cleaning: Dust and dirt can accumulate on your wall lamp over time, reducing its brightness and diminishing its appearance. Clean your lamp regularly using a soft, dry cloth. For glass or metal fixtures, you may want to use a mild cleaner, but always check the manufacturer’s instructions first. - Bulb Replacement: Even though LED bulbs last a long time, they will eventually need to be replaced. When your LED wall lamp for the living room starts to dim or flicker, it’s time for a new bulb. Be sure to choose a replacement bulb that matches the original specifications for brightness and color temperature. - Check for Wear and Tear: Periodically inspect your wall lamps for signs of wear and tear, such as loose connections, frayed wires, or damaged fixtures. Address any issues promptly to ensure your lamp remains safe and functional. - Repaint or Refinish: If your living room wall lamp finish starts to fade or chip over time, consider repainting or refinishing it to restore its original look. This is a cost-effective way to refresh your living room without replacing the entire fixture. By following these maintenance tips, your wall lamp for living room will continue to enhance your space for years to come. Power saving blogs: Lutron Smart Switch vs. Traditional Switches: Why Upgrading is Worth? Motion Sensor Lights: How to Avoid Poor Security? How to Install Solar Power Bank: A Useful Guide

Conclusion

Selecting the right wall lamp for living room lighting is a crucial step in creating a space that’s both functional and stylish. Whether you’re aiming for a modern, minimalist look with cool light or you want to highlight specific areas of your living room, the right wall lamp can make all the difference. By understanding the benefits of cool light, considering various lamp styles, focusing on energy efficiency, and maintaining your fixtures properly, you can create a living room that’s bright, inviting, and uniquely yours. Remember, the perfect wall lamp for living room isn’t just about illumination—it’s about enhancing your home’s overall ambiance and aesthetic. So take your time, explore your options, and choose a lamp that truly reflects your style and meets your lighting needs. living room into a bright, modern, and inviting space that reflects your unique style. Happy decorating this wall lamp for living room blog Read the full article

[wingsdreamt]

steeleidolon​:

Smoldering debris rains down.

Heavy with the mass of landing struts and machinery, the bomber’s wings slam to earth, embedding in cobblestone and gravel like a pair of blades - swords of Damocles, though only the Turks know it. One, then the other, at an angle, precarious and groaning. A hail of shattered carbide and warped steel follows - propellers and turbine housing, singed cables, blown wheels, landing gear sheared off with the violence of banked centripetal force.

The tail-fin is an escape.

Blurring tires, a streak of speed, launched at an angle away.

A fraction of a fraction of a second. Time, like Hope, unspools and stretches, nigh tangible with the sheer will at work, crescendo strains in a symphony of destruction.

Down, down, the fuselage plummets, a missile hurtling back toward the road, back whence it came, back where the fires of the first bombs blacken the rubble of the far curtain wall. Down, down, it clips rock formations, falling with keening inevitability. No time for the pilots or crew to bail. Too low, too fast. They try anyway, ragdolls on strings and half-furled parachutes tossed in the turbulent wake.

Kunsel lands a half-heartbeat after Zack on the ramparts, throttle-shifting, rolling to an active stop–quiet, focused as laughter resonates in his ears, thrills down his spine, galvanizing muscle ready for the next threat, the next. Head down, feet planted, arms outstretched, hands open, geometric shapes illuminate from shoulders to palms. Lambent, esoteric, they spread hand to hand, painting Zack’s too, fingertip to fingertip, pulling on the thread of synergy to redirect the energy in concert.

Unbound, Flare- and Gravity-nodes rip along the fuselage’s lateral lines, cracking it open and compressing it like a shaken can as it crashes nose-first into the rugged terrain, crumples, breaks apart.

A couple of miles. Maybe more, maybe less. Barrier takes shape, growing, amplified between them, as the hovering choppers angle, belly-mounted chain guns pointed–and then disengage, banking, veering as sharply upward and outward as their rotors will allow.

Instinct serves nevertheless.

The bomber erupts into a second sun, every warhead in its broken belly detonating in a single obliterating blast. A column of flame and black smoke mushroom and roil. The shockwave tears across the landscape in a flurry of dust, flattening grass, shattering scrappy trees, ripping farm fences from their posts, tossing the odd vehicles left outside the walls like toys.

It hammers into the palisade with a deafening roar of thunder and the tremor of an earthquake, a wall of tortured sound understored with guttural cracks–fissures in the stone, punctuated with a single crushing peal, Kalm’s clock tower bell shaken from its chained mooring.

The Barrier holds, bulwark for them and for the tall-narrow homes immediately behind them.

Kalm still stands, for now.

As tinnitus fades, they can hear it - voices raised in cheer, in confusion, in panic, and in purpose. A blaze has begun to spread from the first craters. The community here is close-knit; everyone knows everyone, and they rush to help one another.

They have done something.

There is more to do.

“There really is a first time for everything.” 

In this past-now and then some, fire and flame and flying. Fingertip to fingertip. Adrenaline is still a dancing thrum throughout his limbs even as the ringing in his ears begins to let up and their audience breaks away from the spectacle and towards action. The townspeople aren’t the only ones on the move. Like buzzards back in search of carrion, the helicopters are adjusting their post-explosion trajectories to address the cause of their spectacular mission failure.

Kalm will not be destroyed today. It might even be the same Kalm when and if they ever return to their own present time. No way to know and no time to wait around and find out.

The Turks will find no one willing to stick around and play target practice. Zack charges his bike through the near-perfect circle of debris that surrounds them and surges off the wall to land on the nearby rooftops. Slate shingles are shattered and thrown every which way as his wheels cut a path across the angled roofing and he lands, not gracefully, on the street below with an audible ‘oomph’ and a quick, subsequent ‘ow’ over the airwaves. 

“‘Scuse me, coming through!” he yells, swerving to avoid barreling into a miner who had ventured outside after the explosion to lend aid in the aftermath.

Shinra has not yet opened fire. Whether the Turks are awaiting orders or more information or they are reluctant to act in front of so many witnesses, all bets are off once they are out on the open roads of the wasteland. He and Kunsel have the advantage of pure speed and no qualms about using it to push their engines well into the red once they are clear of obstacles. 

An attempt is made by two helicopters to give chase as they burst away from Kalm’s palisade boundary towards Midgar’s smoggy silhouette. The whir of spinning rotary cannons peppers the ground with sparks and bullet casings that fall short of their targets. Close, not quite close enough to have to worry about moving serpentine to avoid a hail of bullets. 

Verticality means that the Turks have an excellent vantage point to track their movement all the way up to Midgar’s outskirts– to an extent. Many of Shinra’s factories stretched along the city edge. Bones of great iron beasts, constructed and subsequently abandoned when they no longer served their original purpose, made for an excellent hiding place for on-the-run fugitives, criminals, teenagers in search of privacy, and in this case, two ex-SOLDIERs.  

The corrugated steel that stretches overhead breaks sightlines and provides cover as they slow to weave between abandoned machinery and rusty warehouse openings. Beneath the shadows of an old canning facility, they finally come to a stop. The Turks should have lost sight of them by now, amidst the maze of broken cement walls and rust. He hopes. One of the helicopters has caught up, thundering in stark contrast to the derelict silence. Zack leans back in his saddle, chances a look up through the broken roof. 

The shadow flies directly past their hiding spot without stopping. 

“Think we gave ‘em the slip?”

[ufocafe]

why does squishmallow have like 60+ different plushies out in the world but only sell 6 random ones on their website? why not just list all of them? why disperse them out into public when there’s ppl out there buying 20 of the same one and then selling them for twice the price on facebook marketplace?!?! they would make so much more money if they just made them available to buy online!!!!

[ticklytums]

It Begins With A Smile

(Luz runs into an unwanted visitor on a potion scavenging attempt, but things take an interesting, childish turn when a weakness is accidentally exposed and Golden Guard learns of a new way to mess with the human.

Warning: Contains fluff and the adorableness of two traumatized children getting to act like children and slowly giggle their way into friendship! Not intended to be GoldenLuz but can be if you want it to be)

“Crammity…”

Sure. It figured. Every time Luz was on her own she seemed to fall into some sort of terrible situation. And this one seemed to include warping mushrooms that she never seemed to be able to grasp before they vanished at her fingertips. Why did all these witch potions include the most unconventional, hard to get ingredients?

“Would you get over here!” Luz hissed as she clawed at one of the flighty mushrooms, before watching the thing vanish and appear once more inches from her. This wasn’t…technically legal, that the young witchling knew. Then again, being under Eda’s mentorship basically screamed ‘I do illegal things all the time!’ Warping mushrooms weren’t meant to be picked until they ripened some more, but…this potion called for ‘young shrooms.’

It’s fine. It could be worse.

“Ah, up to more mischief I see! Who knew a little human could be such trouble…”

And it just got worse.

Luz’s eyes slid shut in absolute dread. She refused to turn her head towards the source of the voice that was just radiating smug teenager energy. Nope, she wasn’t dealing with that jerk’s antics today. Forget the mushrooms. Eda could wait for her ingredients.

Picking up Eda’s staff, the witchling immediately turned around and started her path home—only to yelp as she nearly slammed face first into the Golden Guard.

“It seems you just can’t help being on the wrong end of the law, can you?” the smug prodigy sing-songed. “You know it isn’t legal to pick those mushrooms yet, right?”

“I’m NOT picking them!” Luz growled as she tried to step past the guard. “Now get out of my way.”

The older boy didn’t seem intent to do such, instead merely blocking the girl with his staff as she attempted to advance. He prodded her pointedly with his mechanical staff. “So what are you doing here then?”

As the staff made the blunt and yet gentle connection with her belly, Luz almost felt a squeak slip out. It took a moment to compose herself. “I don’t have to answer you.”

“Yeeees. You. Do!” the guard chirped and he punctuated each word with a light prod against her. Every time he did Luz seemed to suck in her breath and twitch. The prodigy blinked at the response, watching the human as she tensed from the jab of his staff, and looked like she was gritting her teeth quite a bit.

“Oh, what? Am I hurting you?” he scoffed disdainfully at the thought. Humans were pathetic, but Titan, he at least assumed the girl that stood up against Emperor Belos and took a couple good blows from both of them wasn’t so frail. He jabbed her lightly a few more times. “I know your kind is weak, but-“

He was cut off by the small giggling snort that burst from the teen before she could stop it, and she clasped a hand hurriedly over her mouth, before shoving the staff away with her other hand. “Would you knock it off!” Luz snapped, reining in control of her giggles.

The older boy tilted an eyebrow, perplexed. That wasn’t the reaction he expected to provoke… Curious, Golden Guard jabbed at her again, only this time he made the poke deliberately softer, and wiggled the end of the staff a bit. The ticklish jolt made Luz let off a laugh. And he did it again, smirking in delight when she kept trying to get away from it.

Well, that was…an interesting reaction. Living the life he had, Golden Guard hadn’t exactly been granted the luxury to engage in juvenile play, and he had little experience with tickling.

But that was about to change.

“Well, well, well…” the prodigy taunted the other indignant and increasingly nervous teenager. “What an interesting and may I say rather adorable development. You humans are just full of surprises, aren’t you?”

Luz finally snapped to attention and the guard had only a millisecond to react as balls of flames were tossed towards his face, crackling passed him. The boy effortlessly dodged them and his staff deflected a few icicles with a chuckle. His amusement was just fueling Luz’s annoyance.

“Oh now now,” the guard admonished teasingly as he simply avoided her little tantrum by holding her back with his staff. “No need to throw such a fuss, I’m just playing around!”

Luz gave a growl and shot a murderous glare as much as she could to the older kid. “And what after that? Going to cart me off to Emperor Belos, are you?”

“Hmm, well I suppose I should!” the boy said with a sigh as his maroon eyes sparkled mischievously under the golden mask. “But where would the fun be in that already, hm?” After all, he wasn’t done experimenting.

Luz growled and positioned an ice glyph on the ground, stepping upwards so she could launch up into the sky. The prodigy was impressed and barrel rolled out of target range as several fireballs singed the red grass. With a crimson flash he disappeared, and Luz let off a squeal as she felt a poke against her side.

“Would you-!” Furiously, the girl spun around—only to see the flickers of magic disappearing as he vanished again. And the moment she turned, he was back as his fingers ghosted over both sides.

A laugh tumbled out of the teenaged girl as her knees bent slightly in instinct and she furiously took a swipe—only to smack uselessly at empty air. “-fihihight me normally, you-you jerk!”

The Golden Guard appeared back in his original spot and gave an amused laugh. “Oh, I could…but it’s much more fun to mess with ya!” He watched the human sift through her pockets frantically.

“Well I’m not in the mood to be messed with!” the girl snapped. She rose Eda’s staff but before it could connect with the jerk’s head, he disappeared in a flickering streak of red light. “Huh? Wh-ah!” And then reappeared with an arm having hoisted her up off the ground.

“I’ve noticed,” Golden Guard responded smugly. “I suppose I have to enact my duty and punish someone who would dare to harm an official of the royal court.” His smirk grew when he felt the girl tense, before the frantic kicking resumed.

“Let go of me, you creep! I’ll-I’ll burn that ugly Halloween mask off your face!”

“You don’t think I’ve noticed you’ve run out of glyphs?” the older teen responded mischievously, and he laughed as the color drained from her face. “Yeeeah, I don’t think you’ll be doing much, human! Ah, except maybe laughing yourself to insanity.”

Luz’s eyes widened but before she could snap anything back she felt the gentle wiggle of fingers trace along her side. “N-no!” The witchling let off a string of Spanish curses as she struggled not to burst into laughter. That attempt failed when the boy’s fingers switched the target area to her belly and grinned when laughter began to bubble from her.

“Well your kind is just full of sensitivity! And wiggles!” he practically crooned at the poor girl, who at this point was just a laughing ball. He watched in amusement as she attempted to curl her legs up and limit the access to her tummy, but he easily maneuvered back to it.

“S-stohahap!” Luz squealed frantically as she was reduced to embarrassing snorts and hearty peals of laughter as his fingers skittered everywhere. She kicked against the ground and tried to fumble out her threats, but it was useless and tears pricked at her eyes.

This was such an unexpected and entertaining turn of events from the dreary day the guard was expecting, he’d have to thank the human later. Despite her earlier attack on him, the prodigy felt no inclination to harm her. To do so would ruin the fun! And he rather liked this little game, toying with the younger kid as a cat might with a mouse.

“Never really got to experience this growing up. What’s it like, human?”

Luz’s hiccups and wriggles had finally granted her some leeway as she managed to pry an arm free. Fine! So that’s the way he wanted to play? “Well why don’t you see for your-SELF!” And suddenly her spare hand plunged towards the older kid’s ribs.

The effect was absolutely instant.

“Wh-ahahahat!?” The teenager let off a giggling yelp as he stumbled, and it gave Luz the perfect opportunity to twist around and lunge furiously at the boy. She didn’t really think about running at the moment, too intent on delivering back what was just served to her. However, even she didn’t expect the squeaky laughter that burst from the guard as she dug into his ribs.

The older boy’s genuine laugh was so…bubbly and boyish, sounding ten years younger than he was. It was riddled with snorts already and despite herself Luz couldn’t help the way her lips tilted up a bit.

“Wow dude, your laugh is ridiculous. You sound like a pig.”

“I-I do not!” the boy attempted to snap, his laughter reaching a new octave as she drilled into his sides. “I’m totally dignified!” When her hands plunged towards his tummy he squeaked and curled up. This time Luz actually laughed.

“Oh yeah, totally dignified. So, who can’t take it now, bird face?” She switched the scribbles to softly ghosting his sides, and that seemed to drive him even more wild. The poor kid attempted a spell, and Luz watched in great amusement as the magic barely made a spark before he lost his concentration. In his struggles his mask had actually slipped off his face, giving Luz a full view for the first time of this kid.

She knew he was a ‘genius teen prodigy’ but for the first time she actually got to see the kid like her, with his boyish and slightly chubby cheeks and a face of youth just as much as it was one of trauma. Watching his face crinkle up in an almost joyful fashion made Luz nearly forget who it was she was dealing with.

“H-human unhahahand mehehe! I demand you to or you’ll saHAHAFFER THE-!” But he couldn't finish that threat as the laughter cut him off. Luz’s hands were clawing at his stomach and had found a rhythm that was driving him up the wall.

“The great teen prodigy, taken down by a little tickling! From a human!” Luz teased the boy. “Wait until I tell Eda! Oh no, better yet! Wait until I tell Lilith!”

“N-not if I have anything to say a-about it!” Golden Guard growled as he finally managed to reach out and tweak at Luz’s side.

“Ah!” Luz let off a giggling yelp as her body faltered trying to keep the older kid pinned down. She tried to jerk towards the side to avoid his grab, but it was making her wobble, and threaten to tumble off of him. “Y-you’re just a sore loser that can’t handle thahat he’s being beaten by a human!”

Both of their staffs were in easy reach and both witchlings easily could have grabbed for their actual weapons, but neither seemed inclined to do so. If anything, they seemed to have forgotten their hostility only moments prior in the wake of this bizarre game of trying to out tickle the other.

“Beaten?” the guard scoffed through his giggles as his hands suddenly locked around the girl’s wrists in an attempt to overpower her. “Y-you’re giving yourself a generous compliment, human!” He shoved against Luz, who was also pushing against his arms now.

“I am, and I’m also gonna give you a dose of THIS!” Luz smirked, her hands darting up under the older teen’s arms. Her eyes widened in shock at the explosive reaction that invoked, and she watched him desperately dig his elbows into his sides to try and protect the sensitive spot. His kicking was just wild now.

“N-NAHAHAHA! S-STAHAHAP!”

Luz couldn’t help it. Despite the fact not a finger was touching her, she laughed genuinely. “Wooow, okay I didn’t expect you to go that nuts.” Found his worst spot it seemed. “I guess it has to be pretty bad if someone as proud as yourself is actually willing to beg for mercy!” That evil grin widened, like a mischievous younger sister. “And I’m not gonna give it.”

The sixteen year old was laughing helplessly now as he twisted about to try and get away from Luz’s mischievous and playful little pokes. She was evilly prodding and jabbing anywhere she could reach, from his tummy to his sides, and back up under his arms. “Do you give up yet?”

“I’m goHONNA FEED YOU TO A DE-DEMON!”  the guard squealed, tears of mirth in his eyes. A flailing hand waved around until it found her tummy to poke, invoking a squeak from Luz.

“Ah! Ahaha, hey!” Luz grappled with the hands, and by now the two were just…a giggling mess. Both were just laughing, ticklish kids that seemed to have forgotten this was even a battle to begin with and were treating it as way more of a game now.

“You’re not gonna win this fight with me, dude! I’ve been having tickle fights with my Mami since I was little!” And had decimated everyone at the owl house at least once by now.

The teenager laughed as he kept trying to pin the younger kid. “Yeah? Well I’m the Golden Guard, so I’m stronger than you!”

“You sure about that??”

Their bizarre and adorable tickle battle went on for another good couple minutes, the two putting aside their animosity as they just let themselves indulge in being children for once, without thinking about the opposing sides they were on, or the trauma they’d been through. Both kids were breathless by the end of it. Luz barely even remembered she was supposed to be out here collecting mushrooms, or that she was essentially playing with her enemy.

“I…totally won that, human,” the boy panted out smugly, and he yelped a bit as Luz shoved him back down to the ground. He was still so caught off guard he hadn’t even seen it coming.

“You didn’t win anything. You jerk.” She rolled her eyes but after a moment offered a hand to help him up. “…Wait, what were we even trying to win?”

He seemed just as perplexed, eyes looking around slowly as if he was trying to find some explanation. A flustered look came to his face and his maroon eyes narrowed at Luz as she gave a small snort.

“Well regardless!” he went on haughtily, as if he hadn’t just been a giggling mess a moment ago. “I hope you’ve learned not to mess with a royal guard. Unfortunately it didn’t appear as if the younger teenager looked the least bit intimidated. In fact she merely smirked.

“Oh you mean the royal guard that was just giggling and squealing like a five year old girl?” Luz laughed as the teenager scowled in fury and his blush deepened. “Yeah, I definitely won’t ‘mess’ with you again,” the kid teased.

Golden Guard grunted a bit as his fingers twitched. A look of turmoil crossed his face as he kept staring at the human. It was no use. She wasn’t afraid of him anymore. Technically she hadn’t been before but he at least knew she was wary of his presence. …That wasn’t the case now.

“Well…” The prodigy hopped up onto his staff and began to rise up into the air. “This was a warning, you know.” The staff flew closer to her and the butt of it bopped her in the stomach. “Next time I won’t be so nice, human.”

“Luz.”

The boy frowned. “Huh?”

“My name, it’s Luz.” Luz crossed her arms and lifted a brow. “You could at least dignify me with my real name, you know.” She watched him blink. “So what can I call you then?”

The older teen turned away at her imploring eyes as he once again attempted to harden the proverbial walls of his armor that this stupid human had begun to chip at today. “Golden Guard,” he muttered, and didn’t miss the way Luz’s shoulders seemed to slightly sag in disappointment. After a moment of consideration, his staff lit up.

Before Luz realized it, she had a small handful of warping mushrooms and she looked to the boy.

“Consider it a small gesture of goodwill,” he told her simply and he ignored the tiny smile she was giving him. “The mushrooms are over populated this year anyway. …Don’t lean too much into this. My mercy was a one time thing.”

Luz laughed softly and gave her strange adversary a wayward smile. “Right. …Uh…thanks.”

“Try to keep yourself out of trouble for once…Luz.”

The kid stuck her tongue out at him, and it earned a small look of amusement from the other. “Yeah, whatever. See you later then, I guess.” And then he was gone. Luz’s grip on the small mushrooms tightened. “…Golden Guard.”

[phantasticworks]

Take a Picture (It'll Last Longer)

hi guys! so it occurred to me that i completely forgot to post the newest part of my new fic on tumblr when i posted it to ao3 the other day so here it is! I hope you guys enjoy this one! I've had a lot of fun working on it!

read on ao3

Words: 18.9k

Summary: Dan and Phil continue their arrangement, but are things changing?

Warnings: swearing, explicit smut, light angst

“We should go Christmas shopping,” Phil announces one afternoon. They were laying in his bed after giving each other blowjobs, and Dan was half-asleep.

“Mmf,” Dan huffs. It’s not exactly an answer. It’s not even really a response.

“Dan,” Phil whines, prodding his chest. “C’mon, it would be fun. We could go into town, get a festive drink, let the spirit of Christmas enter us.”

Dan cracks one eye open at that, giving Phil a smirk. “I don’t think I want the spirit of Christmas to be the one entering me tonight,” he says, his voice smooth.

Phil breaks out into a very predictable blush, but it’s still one of the cutest things Dan’s ever seen. “Dan!” he nearly screeches, swatting at him.

“What?” Dan cackles.

“That’s awful!” Phil shakes his head like he’s disappointed, but his eyes have gone a little wide, and Dan knows he’s thinking about what Dan has just suggested.

It’s the one thing they hadn’t yet done together. They’ve fooled around in every other possible way, but penetration has just been off the table. Until now.

“Do you want to?” Dan asks after he’s done laughing. His voice is unintentionally small. It’s not like he’s particularly nervous about this particular sex act; he’s fucked and been fucked before, but never by someone he cares this deeply for. And the part that hurts the most is that they aren’t even like that, not really.

He watches as Phil swallows hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing against the pale skin of his neck. “Fuck,” he swears under his breath. He glances at Dan quickly, like he hadn’t mean to say it at all. “I mean- God, yeah, of course I want to,” he says.

Dan smiles, scooting closer to him and swinging a leg over Phil’s, as if they didn’t just have sex half an hour ago. “I’d let you, if you want,” he murmurs, trying for seductive. He’s not sure he’s really hit the target in his tone, but Phil swallows again, and he reckons he’s close enough.

“We should go out for dinner,” Phil blurts suddenly.

Dan pulls away a little, blinking at him. “Er… okay?”

“Yeah, we should go eat dinner, and then do some shopping, yeah?” Phil sounds nervous, and Dan can’t for the life of him figure out why. They have dinner together all the time nowadays. In fact, almost every time they see each other they wind up sharing a meal somewhere. It’s not usually at a restaurant, he concedes, the both of them horrible introverts who would much rather be inside the comfort of one of their flats, but still, it has happened.

“Sure,” Dan agrees easily. If he’s honest, dinner is the last thing on his mind.

If he can’t have Phil in the real way, in the way he so desperately wants, then he’ll take this: casual sex and friendship, until Phil no longer has a use for him. The fact that all of this has an expiration date tears at the tattered threads of Dan’s heart more and more each day, but it’s a pain he’s learning to cope with nonetheless.

He’s so deep in his own thoughts that he barely notices when Phil climbs out of the bed and makes his way to his closet. “Um, what are you doing?” Dan asks stupidly when he sees Phil pulling out what looks to be a nicer outfit.

Phil turns and gives him a look like he is stupid. “We have to get dressed if we’re going out!” he says, like it’s obvious.

“We’re going out tonight?” Dan squawks, still mostly naked and covered in slowly-drying bodily fluids.

“Yes,” Phil says, voice full of exasperation. “Go on, go take a shower, I’ll pick something out for you.” He sounds excited, but Dan can’t help but be weary.

“Phil…” He starts.

“No, no!” Phil protests. “Just go, I promise it’ll be good, I won’t pick anything you wouldn’t wear yourself!” It’s probably an empty promise, but his bright eyes and the way he dances on the balls of his feet have Dan convinced.

“Fine,” he says with a sigh, giving in. He stands to go jump in the shower, and he doesn’t miss the way Phil takes a long look at his body. “But I swear to god if you try to put me in color, I’m gonna actually kill you.”

“Fine, whatever,” Phil says, waving him off. “Go, go shower, smelly boy. Your fairy godmother needs some space to think about your outfit.”

Dan feels a tug in his chest when Phil smiles at him. He can’t help but step close and kiss him, just once, to dull the pain a little. “You’re on thin ice,” he whispers, his lips still a breath away from Phil’s.

“You have semen in your hair,” Phil murmurs back, pecking his lips.

Dan flips him off as he stomps off to the shower.

~~~

“You have got to be fucking kidding me,” Dan says nearly half an hour later, staring at the clothes Phil has so charitably laid out for him. The jeans are fine, black skinnies with rips new enough that he knows Phil hardly wears them. His problem lies entirely with the sweater.

The red, sparkly sweater.

“What?” Phil asks, voice pitched high in false confusion. “It’s nice!”

“I’m not wearing that,” Dan says vehemently.

“But Dan, it’s Christmas! Red is a very Christmassy color!”

“Red is Christmassy,” Dan spits. “This is- that’s fucking-“

“I call it ‘ladybird chic’,” Phil says, unhelpfully.

Dan turns, very slowly, to glare at him. “Absolutely not.”

Phil pouts. “It’ll look really good if I take any photos this evening.”

Dan swears under his breath. Stupid Phil with his stupid soft, kissable lips with their perfect Cupid’s bow. “I’m wearing a coat over it,” he says haughtily.

Phil grins proudly. “Of course,” he nods. “It’s not exactly my warmest sweater, and I don’t want you to get cold.”

Something about that makes Dan’s stomach twist sharply, a feeling he can’t name taking up all the space in his chest as he watches Phil search for a coat. He makes it so hard, sometimes, to not confess that he’s in love with him. Dan isn’t too stupid to think he’ll let himself go that far- he does have some dignity- but god Phil makes it hard.

“Will this work?” Phil asks, returning with a simple but warm-looking black coat.

Dan nods, taking it from him and setting it on the bed next to the outfit. “Thanks,” he says, his voice soft.

Phil smiles at him when he glances up. “No problem,” he says warmly, leaning in and planting a kiss on Dan’s temple. “I’m gonna hop in the shower, I’ll be right back,” he says, leaving Dan with the lingering feeling of lips and warmth.

~~~

Phil looks amazing.

That’s probably the understatement of the year, Dan thinks, but he’s at a loss for words when Phil steps into the lounge, fully dressed.

He’s got black skinny jeans on as usual, but he’s gone for a really nice grey sweater and his glasses, something Dan is always, always enamored with. He figures he’s probably fully staring at him, but Phil doesn’t seem to mind, so Dan sees no reason why he should look away. In fact, Phil seems to like it, if his smirk is anything to go by.

“Ready to go?” He asks, completely ignoring the way Dan is practically undressing him with his eyes.

“Sure,” Dan says, his voice coming out a little garbled. He clears his throat, flushing. “Let’s go.”

~~~

They end up at an Italian place, one that Dan’s never been to. It’s nice, nicer than he expected when Phil suggested they go out to dinner. It almost feels like a date, if Dan lets himself think too much about it. But he knows better than that, so of course he doesn’t let himself think about it at all.

Instead, he convinces Phil to order wine.

“Come on, I’m almost done with classes, and it’s a Friday. Shouldn’t we celebrate the end of the week?” Dan says, batting his eyelashes to really sell it. The truth is he doesn’t think he can keep his mind from drifting off into romance land if he’s not at least slightly inebriated.

Phil sighs, but nods. “Fine.” He gestures for the waitress to come back over, then points to something on the wine menu. “We’ll each do a glass of the Cabernet Sauvignon, please,” he says, tapping the name.

The waitress nods before disappearing, and Dan watches Phil as he fiddles with the menu, biting his lip in thought. “You sounded like some proper wine connoisseur, just then,” Dan says mildly, glancing over his own menu. He already knows he’s likely to get the same thing he always does at Italian restaurants, but he feels weird staring at Phil when he isn’t looking back.

Phil snorts. “Not hardly,” Phil says dryly. “Cabernet‘s just the happy medium.”

Dan tilts his head at that. “How so?” He asks.

Phil glances up at him, and his lips twitch into a smile. “Well, you like wine that’s bitter, and I like sweeter wine. You always order something with mushrooms when we do Italian, and I usually do some type of tomato-sauce pasta, so...” The waitress returns then with the bottle of wine, and Phil smiles at her. “So Cabernet is the happy medium for us.”

Dan blinks at him. Phil asks the waitress a question about something on the menu, looking completely casual, as if he didn’t just send Dan’s heart spinning. As if they just know each other that well- just fit together that well, without ever even acknowledging it.

He’s still lost in thought when the waitress turns to him with a smile. “And for you, sir?” She asks.

Dan shakes his head in an effort to clear it. “Uhh...” His mind is cloudy at the moment, and he can’t really see the menu.

“They have the mushroom risotto you like,” Phil says softly. “Is that okay?”

Dan nods dumbly. “Yeah,” he says weakly. “That’s fine, thanks.”

The waitress nods, taking their menus before leaving the table. It’s quiet then, and Dan jumps a little when he feels Phil’s foot brush against his. “Sorry,” Phil says, frowning. “Are you okay?”

Dan nods. It’s not a lie, exactly. He thinks maybe he is okay, but everything feels stilted and weird now, and the traitorous, lonely part of his brain is trying to convince him that this- this thing between him and Phil- means more than it does. “I’m fine,” he says quickly, nodding again. “Just tired, I guess.”

A brief flash of something like disbelief flashes across Phil’s face, but it’s gone in a blink. “We can just go back home after dinner, if you don’t feel like shopping.”

The word “home” plays on loop in Dan’s brain until he processes the rest of the words. “No, no, it’s fine. I’ll feel better after we eat,” he says, shrugging it off.

Phil nods, and they fall into silence again. They’ve known each other long enough now that it’s not uncomfortable, but Dan’s skin still itches with the quiet. He’s trying to think of something to say when he feels something brush his ankle. He glances up to find Phil smirking at him.

Dan quirks a brow. “Can I help you?” he asks, barely hiding a smile.

The smirk on Phil’s face just deepens, and he rubs his ankle against Dan’s. It shouldn’t feel as good as it does, but Dan’s long past the point of being surprised that everything feels better with Phil. “Nope,” Phil says, biting back a laugh.

Dan rolls his eyes. He takes a sneaky glance around them, and finds that no one is paying any attention to them. He takes that confirmation of almost-privacy and decides to be cheeky. Taking a sip of his water, he shifts his legs, trailing his foot up the length of Phil’s leg teasingly slow. He watches as Phil’s face flushes, the smirk dropping away to a look of surprise.

“Dan,” he hisses.

“What?” Dan says innocently. “You started this.”

Phil shakes his head, his hand disappearing below the table and catching Dan’s ankle in his hand before Dan can reach his destination. “Not now,” Phil murmurs.

That sends a little thrill through Dan. There’s an unspoken “later” in the air between them, and Dan recalls suddenly what he had offered earlier, when they were getting ready to leave. His blood rushes through his veins hot and fast, making him light headed.

“Are we still going to...” he trails off when the waitress approaches with their food, giving her a fake smile.

She makes sure they’re comfortable and have everything they need before leaving the table again, and by then Dan’s too distracted by his food to return to what he wanted to say.

“Fuck,” he moans around the first bite. “This is delicious.” He’s trying to mind his table manners, but the food is hot and sort of amazing, and he hasn’t eaten anything since breakfast. He really can’t help the sounds that fall from his mouth at that point.

He takes a sip of his wine to wash it down and finally glances over at Phil. His entire face is red, and he’s staring down at his plate with pursed lips. Dan blushes, realizing exactly what he sounded like. Then, he remembers their current situation, and the fact that it really shouldn’t bother Phil, hearing Dan make sexual noises. After all, they’ve been getting each other off for the past month or so, so he’s surely used to it by now.

“Sorry,” he says, despite himself. “Got a little too excited about dinner,” he explains, flickering his eyes between Phil and his plate.

Phil nods, avoiding eye contact. “Right, yeah,” he says, his voice sounding hoarse.

Dan smirks down at his plate, but decides to give Phil a break. “How’s the photo series going? Are we almost done taking photos?”

Phil looks relieved at the change of subject, and his eyes are bright when he looks up at Dan. He’s so enthusiastic about this project, just like he is with everything that he really cares about. Dan can’t help but find it ridiculously endearing.

“Almost, yeah. We’ve gotten some really great shots for experiential, but I don’t think I’ve gotten like the perfect shot for each of the other categories,” Phil says. His eyebrows furrow as he looks down, looking more than a little bothered by that.

“What’re the other categories again?”

“Intellectual, emotional, and er- sexual,” Phil says with a deep blush.

Dan smirks. “Sounds like we can knock that last one out pretty easily,” he says, only sort of teasing.

Phil’s nose goes a little pink, but he’s got a guarded look in his eye as he chases a bite of pasta around his plate. “I don’t know if I want that one to be like...” he trails off, glancing up at Dan with something soft in his eyes.

“Like...?” Dan prompts, confused.

“Like... genuine,” Phil says.

Dan blinks. “Why?”

Phil clears his throat, looking down again. “I don’t- I just- I just want you to be comfortable, yeah? And if it would make you uncomfortable to-“

“It wouldn’t,” Dan interrupts. His face immediately warms when he realizes how that must sound. “I mean... it’s what we’ve been doing this whole time, right? I’ll be no more vulnerable naked than I have been for every other candid shot you’ve done.”

Phil looks almost- disappointed, in a way. Dan can’t think of a reason why he would be, so he convinces himself that he’s probably just imagining it, that Phil is probably just thinking about the best way to shoot the more explicit photographs.

“Sure,” he says eventually, downing a few gulps of his wine. “We’ll work on that stuff- later, yeah?”

“Sure,” Dan echoes, sipping his own wine.

‘Later’ is starting to have a lot of weight.

~~~

After they’ve finished their meal and Phil has ignored Dan trying to pay for the check, they head out to see what the shops have to offer. Everything is so bright with all the twinkling lights and decorations, and Dan’s feeling just a little bit warm and fuzzy with it all. Maybe that’s why he reaches for Phil’s hand, he thinks to himself absently. It’s probably just the overwhelming excitement of it all forcing him to reach out for something to ground himself. Definitely not his deep attraction and infatuation with his best friend.

Right?

Either way, for whatever reason on both their parts, Phil doesn’t pull away at the touch. Instead he laces their fingers together, swinging their hands between them as they meander down the busy streets. It feels safe, with so many strangers surrounding them, to share a touch like this in public. No one here knows them, any looks cast their way are forgotten the moment the gawker looks away.

“Ooh, mulled wine!” Phil announces after a while of aimless wandering. He tugs Dan in the direction of the stall he’s laid his eye on, and Dan allows himself to be dragged. “Do you like mulled wine?” Phil asks as they stand in line to order.

Dan shrugs. “Yeah, it’s alright.” He wants to say something about how it would taste better coming from Phil’s lips, but he thankfully restrains himself from going that far.

Phil rambles on about something that happened to him a few years ago, something about spilling cider all over a guy he worked with that he also had a crush on. Dan’s trying to listen but he keeps getting distracted by the rosy patches on Phil’s face, his frostbitten cheeks looking more kissable than ever.

“We’ll have two mulled wines, please,” Phil says to the sweet older lady tending the booth.

She smiles and nods as she goes about preparing them, and Dan doesn’t even have the chance to reach for his wallet before Phil is sliding a few notes across to her. “Have a good evening! Happy Christmas!” the shop lady says with a happy wave after she hands them their drinks.

“Thanks, you too,” Phil replies with a smile, taking Dan’s hand again and leading them over to a set of benches situated around a massive tree. “Mm, this is really good for the spot,” Phil hums happily, slurping on his mulled wine.

Dan gives him an odd look as they sit together. “Good for the spot?” he repeats.

Phil nods. “Yeah, you know. That thing people say when something tastes good.” He looks so sure of himself, and Dan sort of hates to burst his bubble, but it’s basically his duty as a citizen to do so.

“You mean “hits the spot,” right?”

Phil blinks. “Er...” He seems to consider it for a lot longer than Dan thinks is necessary, and finally he shrugs. “Okay, maybe. Maybe that’s what I meant.”

Dan cackles out a laugh at this, dropping his head back with unabashed glee. “Oh god,” he giggles. “You’re such an idiot.”

Luckily they’ve grown comfortable enough with each other that Phil’s not really offended. He pretends, though, knocking their shoulders together with a pout. “You have to be nice to be. I bought you dinner and mulled wine.”

That makes Dan’s skin prickle just a bit. “Right...” he says, looking down. He knows Phil didn’t say that with the intentions of making him feel guilty, but he can’t help what he feels. “About that, actually,” Dan starts.

“Hm?”

“I wish you’d let me pay for something. Like dinner, or the wine, or something, you know?” He looks down at his hands wrapped around his cup, flicking the plastic lid with his thumbnail. “I’m not entirely useless.”

Phil makes a startled, hurt noise in his throat. “Dan, I never said you were. I don’t- listen, I paid because... well, I dragged you here, didn’t I?” He shifts awkwardly, and won’t meet Dan’s eye. If Dan didn’t know any better, he’d say Phil seemed sort of nervous.

“You hardly did any dragging,” Dan says with a roll of his eyes. “I wanted to come. Believe it or not, I genuinely enjoy spending time with you.”

Phil looks surprised, and Dan snorts. He feels like it’s really hardly a shock that he enjoys spending time with him; if Phil was only slightly less oblivious, he’d have already realized that Dan’s got feelings for him.

“Oh,” Phil says, stupidly.

Dan knocks their shoulders together. “Yeah, oh,” he mocks, his voice gentler than he meant it to be. “I’m just saying, you should let me pay for stuff now and again. It’s not going to break me.”

Phil nods, but looks down, mumbling something under his breath. It sounded like “I like taking care of you,” and that sends Dan’s heart beating so fast that he can’t even ask Phil to repeat himself. If that wasn’t what he said, well, Dan wants to be ignorant for now, and live in that bliss.

“Shall we do some shopping?” Dan asks, changing the subject. He’s drained nearly half his mulled wine already, and the warmth of the alcohol is making its way to his veins, making him giddy with energy.

“Yeah, but first...” He hands Dan his cup, which is almost completely empty already, and grabs his camera.

Dan rolls his eyes. “Is this really a photo-worthy moment?” he asks, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Phil smirks at him over the camera. “Of course it is. Now smile!”

Dan looks directly over the camera, straight into Phil’s eyes. He’s not really smiling, but he’s not frowning either. He’s just... looking at him. The camera flashes once, then twice, and then Phil lowers it, looking back at Dan with something almost wild in his eyes. Dan hands him his cup back silently, and purposefully brushes their fingers together. Something settles in Phil’s expression then, and he gives Dan a soft look before downing the rest of his drink.

“Shall we?” he says as he stands, holding a hand out for Dan to take. The smile he gives him when Dan does is gorgeous and makes every photo worth it.

~~~

Dan allows himself to be led in and out of shops for the next two hours, and Phil takes plenty of photos along the way. He takes photos of Dan window shopping, walking, admiring decorations; basically any move Dan makes, Phil captures. And Dan knows he agreed to this, he knows that it’s all for Phil’s project, but after a while, he grows tired of it.

Eventually, Dan turns to him and gives him a withering look. “Can we put the camera away and just be us for a little while?” He doesn’t intend for his voice to be so soft, but he can barely hear it as it floats in the air between them.

Phil lowers the camera with a strange look on his face. “Yeah?” he asks, like he’s surprised.

Dan nods, and before he can think twice about it, he reaches out and laces their fingers together. “C’mon, I saw a nerd shop over there that I want to check out.”

Before he gets the chance to turn away, Phil darts into his space, kissing the corner of his mouth softly. It’s over so quickly that Dan almost thinks he may have imagined it, simply because Phil looks so calm and confident afterwards. He simply squeezes Dan’s hand and leads him in the direction of the shop, and Dan feels like he’s been left to play catch-up, not for the first time today.

“Hey, look at this,” Phil says suddenly, when they’re almost to the shop. He slows to a stop, his eyes scanning over a bulletin board posted on the bit of brick wall between the windows of the game shop and the bakery next door. “Dan, look!” He taps Dan’s arm excitedly as he speaks, as if Dan’s not already looking at the poster.

“Open Auditions” it announces at the top. Dan’s heart quickens, just slightly. A quick scan of information confirms what he’d already gathered: a local theatre company is holding open auditions for their upcoming performance of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice.

Dan’s heart races and his vision has gone slightly fuzzy as he tries to take in the information. He can barely focus on anything, his ears ringing with the possibilities. This could be it, a little voice in his head mocks. An escape from the life you don’t want, a chance to be more.

It takes him a minute to come back to his senses, and when he does Phil is rambling excitedly beside him. “-great this is, Dan, you’ve got to audition, this would be perfect for you!”

Dan shakes his head slowly, trying to clear the cloud of fantasy that’s infiltrated his mind. “No,” he says eventually. He forces himself to look away, reminds himself that life isn’t a fairytale. He chose this shitty career and this shitty life, he can’t just back out now. His parents may have raised a socially awkward, queer procrastinator but they didn’t raise a quitter.

“No?” Phil says the word like it’s foreign. “What do you mean, I thought you wanted to act again if you got the chance?” He sounds confused.

Dan shrugs, avoiding eye contact with Phil as he shuffles his feet, moving further from the bright poster. “Yeah, but... come on, this? It’s not very responsible, is it?”

Phil blinks at him, glancing at the poster like it has the answers he needs. “Er- how do you mean?” he asks carefully.

Dan hates that. He hates that he’s ruining their nice day with his bullshit. “Well, I’ve got class, don’t I? And like, work, and shit. I can’t - I don’t have time for this.”

There’s a brief moment of pause where Phil looks at him, then studies the poster again, clearly thinking hard about something. “The auditions are next week, so I bet the rehearsals start after you’re done with classes.”

Dan tells that little stirring of hope in his chest to pipe down. Instead, he shrugs, like he couldn’t care less about the whole thing. “Whatever. Are we going in? It’s fucking freezing out here.”

Phil nods and gestures to the store, so Dan turns to lead the way. He notices Phil doesn’t move to hold his hand again, and he pretends that doesn’t hurt his feelings. When he opens the door he glances behind him, and Phil is still a few steps away, like he’d stood there for a minute before following after Dan. Dan can’t imagine why, and decides it’s better not to think about that at all.

He waves Phil in ahead of him, and spares one last look at the poster before following after Phil and into the shop.

~~~

Dan would love to pretend that he stops thinking about the audition flyer by the time they make it back to Phil’s place, but it would be a lie. It’s still there, in the back of his mind, mocking him with the possibilities.

So he does what any reasonable adult would do.

He immediately jumps at the opportunity to get in Phil’s pants.

It’s not like it’s difficult at this point in their... situation, but he still finds part of him is reluctant to be the one to make the first move, if only because he’s scared of rejection. But this time, like so many times before, Phil indulges him.

“Oh,” Phil laughs as Dan pushes at his coat, his voice deep and sexy like it always is at the end of a long day, when he’s truly worn out. Dan can’t believe he has the privilege of knowing exactly what this sounds like. “Eager, are we?”

Dan latches his mouth onto Phil’s jaw, sucking gently as he shoves the stupid coat off of Phil’s shoulders. “Wanna fuck you,” he mumbles against Phil’s chin, loving the prickly feeling of almost-beard under his mouth.

Phil makes a good noise then, a horny one that Dan doesn’t get to hear nearly often enough. “Can we- bed?” he mumbles out around Dan’s mouth, which has finally found its way to Phil’s.

“Mhm,” Dan mumbles, guiding Phil backwards blindly.

This proves to be a bad idea when he leads him into a wall approximately five seconds later, but luckily, Phil is able to laugh it off. “I’m fine,” he mumbles, pulling Dan back against him once more and kissing across his cheeks. “Let me lead,” he whispers.

Dan allows that, following Phil as he shuffles them backwards down the hall towards his bedroom, their lips barely parting the whole way there. It’s sloppy and messy, but it’s hot, too, unbearably so. Dan is so turned on by the time they step foot in Phil’s room, he’s half afraid he won’t even make it to the good part.

Luckily, Phil trips right before they reach the bed, and the resulting stumble-almost-fall is enough to calm Dan down a little. He’s giggling against Phil’s mouth as they right themselves, and Phil is struggling to mumble an apology around the kisses he’s receiving.

“Dan,” he manages, thumping on Dan’s chest a little, just enough to get Dan’s attention and make him pull away for a second. Phil catches his breath and then smiles at Dan, a wide, gorgeous thing. “Slow down, baby. We’ve got all night.”

It’s said so softly, so lovingly, that Dan thinks he’s going to cry. So, instead of listening, he throws that caution to the wind and leans in for another kiss, his hands dropping to undo Phil’s belt. Phil makes a little noise in his throat, and Dan feels gentle hands pull at his wrists, pulling his hands away from where they’re struggling to undo the fasteners on Phil’s jeans. Dan whines and tugs at the grip, trying to free his hands, but he hears a soft shushing noise as Phil breaks the kiss.

Dan doesn’t realize it at first, but when they’re no longer kissing, he feels a dampness on his cheeks. Frustrated, he wipes at the traitorous tears, but at the same time, Phil’s hands come into view, gently wiping the tears away as he murmurs soft words. Dan struggles to make them out at first, his breathing gone hard and ragged. He tries to settle himself, and Phil tugs at his hand, settling it on his own chest like he wants Dan to copy his breathing. He does, and when he finally calms down, Dan can make out what Phil’s saying.

“Shh, there we go. It’s okay, baby. You’re okay. You’re okay.”

It’s said in such a soft, soothing voice that Dan almost starts crying again. This can’t be meaningless. Even though he knows Phil doesn’t feel anything for him like that, some part of him is just begging for this moment to have some kind of meaning, something that means Phil wants him. But wishing can’t change the truth, and he knows that.

“I’m sorry,” he says eventually, his voice raw.

Phil makes a startled noise. “You have nothing to be sorry for,” he says. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I know, but like... crying is so not sexy.” Dan feels embarrassed just to say it.

“I don’t know,” Phil muses. “I think showing your emotions is kinda hot.” He gives Dan a smirk then, and Dan barely refrains from pushing him off the bed. The only reason he doesn’t is because of how much he craves the closeness.

“Did I ruin the mood?” Dan asks timidly, sitting up in Phil’s lap to give him some space.

Phil smiles, but shakes his head. “I don’t think so. Do you still want to...” His face flushes then, like he can’t even bring himself to say the words.

Dan grins. “I definitely still want to fuck you. If you still want that.”

“I do,” Phil says quickly. Dan smirks and Phil blushes. “I just... it’s been a while since I’ve done that, so...”

Dan nods easily. “Do you need some space to get ready?”

Phil looks relieved. “Please?”

Nodding again, Dan leans down and kisses him sweetly. “Of course. I’ll go sit in the lounge while you do what you need to do.”

“Thank you,” Phil says softly, leaning up to peck Dan’s lips once more. “I won’t be long.”

With that reassurance, and a dismissive pat on the bum, Dan sees himself out of the room, going to wait in the lounge like he’d promised while Phil showers and does whatever else he needs to do to feel comfortable with how the evening is proceeding.

~~~

“Dan?”

Phil’s voice is more than welcome in the quiet of the lounge, but it still makes Dan jump a bit. He’d been lost in thought again, pondering over the amount of time they’ve spent together lately and trying to count in his head how many nights he’d spent at Phil’s over the last month. He’d just made it to thirteen when he hears Phil’s voice.

“Yeah?” Dan calls back, already rising from the sofa.

“Can you come here?” Phil replies, his voice a bit quieter. If Dan didn’t know any better, he’d almost say he sounded nervous.

When Dan steps into Phil’s bedroom, he nearly coos. Phil’s turned the overhead light off and lit a couple of candles, and he’s even got music playing from somewhere. It’s all very relaxing, and something about it feels sort of romantic. Dan bats that thought away immediately before it does something stupid, like settle in his already lovesick mind.

“Is this okay?” Phil asks, and Dan’s gaze snaps over to where Phil’s sat at the edge of the bed. Dan hadn’t even registered him sitting there at first, his mind trying to wrap around the way the room is set up. Phil definitely looks nervous, tugging at the hem of his sushi-printed boxers and avoiding eye contact. “I just thought... I don’t know, actually.”

“It’s nice,” Dan murmurs, going to join Phil on the bed. He’s trying to be considerate of the conversation they’re having, but honestly it’s a little hard considering Phil is practically naked, and god Dan loves to look at him. He nudges Phil’s knee with his own, prompting him to make eye contact. “It’s really lovely.”

Phil smiles, pleased. Something darkens in his gaze then, and before Dan has a chance to decipher that look, Phil is climbing onto his lap and gently pushing him to lay flat against the mattress. “This okay?” He murmurs as he kisses his way across Dan’s jaw.

Dan swallows hard, the kissing and weight of Phil on his lap sending heat to his groin. “Yeah,” he chokes out. “This is... fuck, this is perfect.”

Phil makes a humming sort of noise before finally pressing his lips to Dan’s, swiping his tongue against Dan’s bottom lip. Of course Dan opens up for him, feeling that tongue slip in easily. This is possibly Dan’s favorite kind of kissing, the kind that’s wet and maybe a little bit messy. It just feels good, in a way most things don’t.

Eventually, Dan’s hands trail over Phil’s pale back, tracing shapes down his spine with a featherlight touch before reaching his destination. Dan isn’t like, a hundred percent sure, but he’s actually pretty positive that Phil’s got the nicest bum in the world. It’s thick and soft and gives easily under the pressure of his kneading fingers.

“You’ve got the nicest ass,” Dan murmurs to Phil, pulling away just enough to get the words out properly.

Phil laughs against Dan’s neck, and Dan can’t help the full body tremor that happens when he feels pressure on the sensitive skin. “Do you want to fuck it?” Phil asks, in a voice that’s almost innocent.

Dan groans, kneading his cheeks with more purpose. “God. Yeah, I do. Can I?” He knows they’ve sort of already discussed this, but Phil’s allowed to change his mind.

“Of course,” Phil says with a little smile. He leans back, trailing his hands down Dan’s clothed chest before tucking his hands under his borrowed sweater and stroking the skin there. “Take your clothes off, babe.”

Dan feels a tingle down to his toes at the pet name, and has to remind himself very quickly to get a fucking grip. They’re just friends, this is just a friendly fuck. A mutual benefits kind of deal.

Maybe if he says it enough in his head, he’ll start to believe it.

He’s quick to discard of Phil’s stupid ladybird sweater, throwing it across the room blindly, which unsurprisingly earns him a pinch to the hip. “Don’t be rude to my favorite jumper, Daniel,” Phil chastises, a smile in his voice.

Dan’s got a retort on the tip of his tongue, but he bites it in favor of arching up into the way Phil’s stroking his chest, his thumbs catching on Dan’s nipples repeatedly. “Fuck. C’mere,” Dan mumbles, tugging Phil down by his neck. They’ve had enough sex together for Phil to know what he wants, so he goes easily, latching that wonderful mouth around a pink nub and sucking gently.

The sounds that fall out of Dan’s mouth are too loud in the quiet of the room, but if Phil wants him to be quiet, he’s got a funny way of showing it. Instead he reaches for Dan’s jeans, thumbing at the zipper without looking. He’s got them unlatched in seconds, pushing at the material like it offends him.

“Let me-“ Dan mumbles, pushing at Phil’s shoulders. Phil bites down on his nipple then, and Dan keens. It’s never felt so good before, but when they’re like this, it’s never better. “Fuck, fuck,” Dan chants, holding onto his willpower by a thread.

“You will,” Phil mumbles against his skin, kissing his way across to Dan’s other nipple, which has been quite ignored so far. In a feat of coordination Dan wouldn’t have thought him capable of, Phil manages to shuffle his lower half enough to yank Dan’s jeans down past his thighs without stopping the movements of his mouth.

If Dan wasn’t so stupidly turned on, he’d probably say something about how impressed he is.

Phil massages Dan’s thighs with gentle pressure for a while, kissing and sucking and biting at Dan’s nipple all the while. Dan is leaking through his pants at this point, and he makes a very pathetic sort of noise when Phil brushes a hand over his cock.

When Phil pulls away, it gives Dan just a brief moment to recover, but he still squirms under the heat of Phil’s gaze. “What?” Dan finally asks, when Phil won’t stop staring at him.

Phil shakes his head slowly, blinking like he’s coming out of a dream. Dan is positive that it shouldn't be as hot as it actually is. “You’re so gorgeous,” Phil murmurs, rubbing gently over Dan’s thigh.

Dan covers his blushing face with a squeak. He’ll never get used to this naked appreciation that Phil has for his body. A traitorous corner of his mind reminds him that he better not get used to something he’s not even allowed to keep. Dan clears his throat, twitching his head like he can shake the thought away.

“You know...” he starts slowly, a certain conversation coming back to him. “You said that part of the photo series was about sex, right?”

Phil freezes a little then. He’s quick to recover, but not quick enough for Dan not to notice it. “Sexual intimacy,” he corrects, his voice soft. “What about it?”

Dan shifts his hips pointedly. “I think this might be prime photo taking time, bub,” he jokes.

Something shifts in Phil’s face, and he stares down at Dan like he’s grown a second head. “You want me to take them now?” He asks.

Dan shrugs. “Might as well. We’re horny, and all. Kind of makes sense, doesn’t it?”

Phil draws his hands away from Dan’s thighs, and Dan immediately craves his touch again. “I thought you... I thought we were going to...”

“Fuck? Well, that’s the plan, yeah. Doesn’t mean you can’t get your photo thing done too. Two birds, one stone.” Dan doesn’t intend to sound so tetchy, but Phil’s hesitation is getting under his skin. Has he changed his mind? Is Dan’s body not good enough to be photographed in the light of intimacy? His head swirls with self doubt as he sits up. “Look, we don’t have to, but-“

Phil stops him with a hand on his shoulder. “No, we... that’s okay. I’ll, um... let me grab my camera.” His voice sounds wobbly all of a sudden, and Dan frowns.

“Phil, I-“

“It’s fine,” Phil interrupts, climbing off the bed. His face is horribly neutral, and Dan feels a churning, the bad kind, in his stomach.

He watches, wordlessly, as Phil leaves the room, returning a few minutes later with the fancy camera he totes around with them nearly everywhere they go. Dan tries not to glare at the stupid thing. Phil climbs back onto the bed and goes to straddle Dan’s lap again, clicking different things on the camera before holding it up. “Tilt your head,” he says softly.

Dan does, but Phil makes a tutting noise like it’s not what he wanted. Before Dan can ask for better instructions, Phil shifts forward, the movement effectively causing their hips to grind together. Dan can’t help his very human response, tossing his head back with a quiet moan. He hears the camera shutter, and for some reason his skin crawls. He tries to ignore it in favor of grinding up for more of that delicious pressure, reaching out blindly to grip Phil’s hips and pull him closer.

The camera goes off a few more times, but eventually Phil leans away and Dan hears the sound of it being set gently onto Phil’s bedside table. Dan opens his eyes, glancing around until he catches Phil’s gaze. Something has changed. Phil’s got a guarded look in his eye, and Dan feels his stomach clenching with nerves.

“Phil,” he whispers, reaching up and stroking Phil’s cheek gently. He watches as Phil’s eyes slip shut and he leans into the touch. Dan breathes out a sigh of relief at that. It’s a gamble, sometimes, showing even the slightest amount of affection. Because no matter how Phil reacts, Dan has to remember to keep his guard up, protect himself first and worry about the consequences of it all later.

“I want you,” Phil breathes against Dan’s palm.

“You have me,” is Dan’s immediate response. Even if it’s a lie, it’s a lie he feels comfortable telling, as long as it settles whatever is making Phil look so despondent.

Phil blinks at him, raising an eyebrow like a question. Dan nods. It’s worth it for the smile it puts on Phil’s face, for the way he looks down at Dan like he’s given him the world. It’s worth it even though it tears a hole in Dan’s chest. Phil presses a gentle kiss to Dan’s palm then, and Dan knows he’s absolutely fucked.

“How do you normally like it?” Phil asks, pulling away and doing an odd little wiggle to free himself from his pants. Even as ridiculous as he looks, Dan is naturally very distracted at the sight of his cock, and it takes him a second to process what Phil said.

“Oh, uh,” Dan says stupidly. Phil is looking at him with a smug little smirk, and Dan begs his brain to stop being so fucking gay, for like two seconds. “I’m not picky,” he eventually comes up with.

Phil’s lips twitch. “Really?”

Dan nods, watching the way Phil sits up on his knees and begins tugging at Dan’s jeans, which until this moment, Dan had honestly forgotten he was still wearing. “I’m easy,” he says, trying for a flirty tone but not quite getting there.

Phil snorts. He finally pushes the jeans down to Dan’s ankles, leaving Dan to finish kicking them off, paying no mind to how they crumple to the floor in a sad little heap. “Do you think you can handle it if I ride you?” Phil asks, tilting his head.

Dan’s not sure if he wants to laugh or moan. “Uh, yeah,” he stutters out stupidly.

“You sure?” Phil gives him a doubtful look. Dan almost bristles, but then Phil’s hand is diving under the band of his pants and wrapping around his hardness, and Dan can’t find it in himself to even be mildly offended.

“Fuck,” Dan whines. “Yes, just let me-” Dan wiggles helplessly, trying to push his pants off with the use of only one hand. His other is clutching Phil’s thigh, trying to keep himself under control while Phil wanks him.

Phil laughs quietly as he watches Dan struggle but he finally pushes at Dan’s pants, freeing him from them at last. “Are you comfy there?”

Dan nods, but flails an arm above his head in search of a pillow. Phil rolls his eyes and reaches out, tugging on the pillow Dan normally uses when he sleeps over. He pats at Dan’s shoulder to get him to sit up, and when he does, Phil gently places the pillow under his head before pushing his shoulders back down. “Better?” Phil asks.

“Yeah,” Dan says with a smile. “C’mere.” He tugs at Phil’s body, trying to manhandle him onto himself. Phil giggles, like actually giggles, as he complies, straddling Dan’s hips like before. Their nakedness is hard to ignore now, especially when Phil settles, their cocks rubbing together without a barrier between them. Dan groans, squeezing his eyes shut at the feeling.

“You okay?” Phil asks, rocking his hips gently.

Dan swats at him lightly, with absolutely no force behind it. “Don’t be a tease, you know I hate that,” he complains.

Phil grins. “I know you pretend to hate it,” he says, leaning down and kissing Dan’s mouth wetly.

Dan loses himself in it for a bit, forgetting to defend himself entirely. Instead he arches into the kiss and strokes his hands down Phil’s back, trailing his fingers down until he reaches the small of Phil’s back. He pauses there, stroking his fingertips up and down, but Phil arches, making a needy little noise in his throat, and Dan grins, pulling away from the kiss to speak. “Yeah?”

Phil nods, his eyelids fluttering shut. “Yeah. Touch me.”

Dan certainly doesn’t have to be told twice. He pushes his hands down further, kneading Phil’s ass cheeks with a firm hand. Phil groans, pressing back into the touch, and Dan feels a hot surge of arousal in his gut. It’s so beyond sexy for Phil to be on top of him like this, and then for him to be making those noises... Dan can hardly stand it.

“Condom?” He breathes against Phil’s jaw, trailing wet kisses along the smooth expanse of skin. Part of Dan wishes it was a bit stubbled, and then he’s wishing that he’d had the foresight to ask for something a little different. He’s never personally experienced it, but he’s heard good things about being rimmed by someone with facial hair, and he thinks if Phil put off shaving for a couple days, he’d be well on his way to a decent beard.

Dan shakes himself out of his horny fantasy when Phil moves off his lap. The whine that comes out of Dan’s mouth is embarrassing at best, and Phil rolls his eyes when Dan makes grabby hands for him. “Calm down, you actual goblin,” Phil chastises as he looks through the top drawer of his nightstand.

When he finds what he’s looking for he makes a little trumpet noise. Dan’s so endeared with him that it’s actually kind of ridiculous. Phil smiles at him with the same little happy grin he gets sometimes when he makes Dan smile, and Dan reaches out for him. His hand finds Phil’s thigh, and Dan scratches at the hair there while he watches Phil fight with the corner of the condom package.

“Need some help?” Dan asks, his voice softer than he’d intended.

Phil huffs, but shoves the packet into Dan’s hand with an adorably frustrated noise. “Stupid plastic,” he mumbles.

Dan nods as he rips the corner off easily. “Bad for the turtles,” he says mindlessly.

When he glances up, Phil is smiling at him stupidly. “Yeah,” he says, his tone affectionate. “Bad for the turtles.”

Dan grins and gets to work rolling the condom on, squinting when he realizes that it’s a bright blue color. “Uh, is this gonna like dye my dick blue or something, mate?”

Phil scrunches his face up in adorable disgust at that. “Okay, first of all- ew. Don’t call me “mate” when we’re...” he gestures between them pointedly, making eyes at Dan’s penis. “Secondly, no, you weirdo. Your dick will be fine, I just thought they were neat.”

He’s got a little flush on his cheeks when he’s finished with his rant, and Dan has to bite his tongue to keep himself from cooing at him. “Okay, babe, whatever you say,” Dan says, mostly teasing.

Phil bites his lip, but Dan can tell that the pet name does something to him. It may just come from a point of arousal instead of affection, but Dan will take what he can get. “Here,” Phil says, grabbing Dan’s hand and putting something in it.

When Dan looks down, he’s met with a bottle of lube, and he smirks. “You don’t want to put it on me?”

It was meant as a joke, but Phil’s nose crinkles like the idea disgusts him. Dan tries not to take offense. “I don’t like the texture,” he admits. “That’s why I prefer to, like, prepare in the shower. It’s cleaner and I can just wash the lube off my hands right there.”

Dan nods in understanding. Phil was a bit peculiar about textures of things that he touched. “Maybe next time I can help you out with that?” He means for it to come out as a sexy suggestion, but halfway through the sentence he loses his nerve and it comes out as more of a nervous question.

Phil leans down and kisses his shoulder. “Yeah,” he says simply. Then he nudges Dan’s hand. “Alright, get to work, I’m not getting any younger.” He waggles his eyebrows as he says this, making Dan snort.

“Bossy,” he mumbles as he pours a dollop of lube onto his hand. He tries not to feel watched as he covers himself with it, but he can feel Phil’s eyes on him like a touch. Instead of psyching himself out, he leans into the feeling, giving himself a couple good wanks before drawing his hand back. “Reckon that’s enough?” He asks as Phil settles in his lap again.

Phil shrugs. “You can add more if it isn’t,” he says with a cheeky grin.

Dan rolls his eyes, but Phil’s already sitting up and looking at him expectantly, so Dan reaches down, carefully guiding himself to Phil’s waiting hole. He grips Phil’s hip with his free hand, smiling when Phil reaches down to grip his wrist in a loose hold. They’re both quiet when Dan presses into Phil for the first time, almost holding their breath. It takes Dan a second to realize that Phil actually is holding his breath and he moves his hand to hold Phil’s, squeezing gently.

“Breathe, baby.”

Phil takes in a noisy breath, and his body relaxes enough for Dan to push inside past the first tight ring of muscle. He’s already sweating, the pressure he feels around the head of his cock absolutely maddening already. “Thrust up a bit,” Phil whispers, balancing himself with one hand on Dan’s chest, his other still kept in Dan’s grip.

Dan immediately obliges, pausing only to decipher the noise Phil makes when he bottoms out. “You okay?” He whispers, reaching up and stroking Phil’s chest in a soothing sort of way.

“Yeah,” Phil breathes, nodding. “It’s just, like... been a while.”

It’s stupid how happy those words make Dan. “Same,” he murmurs, trailing his hand up and petting at Phil’s collarbones.

Phil smiles down at him, shifting his hips a little to get used to the stretch. He leans down slowly, taking care not to disrupt the position, and peppers Dan’s face with kisses, only some of them landing on his lips. It feels like so much, all of this affection while he’s buried balls deep inside his best friend, and as much as Dan craves it, he can feel himself beginning to suffocate underneath it all.

Gently, so as not to hurt or surprise Phil, Dan reaches down to grip his hips, pulling out a little ways and thrusting back in. Phil moans against his cheek, and Dan smiles. “Good?” He asks, just to make sure.

“Yes,” Phil whispers. “Right- right there!” He nearly squeals the last part as Dan thrusts a few more times, keeping his angle. He must’ve managed to find Phil’s prostate like this, so he reaches one hand up to grip the back of Phil’s neck, holding him in place.

“You feel so good,” Dan whispers. It’s the truth, Phil always feels good whether they’re sharing a kiss, giving each other blowjobs, or just brushing shoulders as they sit on the couch watching a film. He realizes with a start that as incredible as this is, this isn’t even his favorite way to feel Phil, not by far.

“Mm,” Phil moans, barely coherent. Dan looks at him and smirks when he sees how out of it Phil is, watery, hooded eyes and his teeth digging into his bottom lip in a very Dan-esque fashion. “Meant to be riding you, though,” Phil finds enough brain cells to mutter.

Dan pulls him in for a wet kiss. He can’t not, not with Phil looking like this sat on his cock. When he releases him, he does so completely, tossing his arms over his head to rest on the pillow. He settles Phil with a challenging look. “Okay, so what am I doing all of the work for?”

Phil narrows his eyes at him as he sits up. “You lazy git,” he says, with no bite in his voice.

Dan smirks. “I could say the same about you.”

“Pft.” Phil seems to take this as a personal challenge, steadying himself on Dan’s chest with both hands before he begins moving his hips, doing little bounces at first before eventually abandoning that to grind in tight little circles.

Dan moans. Loudly.

“Fuck.”

“Shh, my neighbors will hear us,” Phil chastises.

Dan groans. “Fuck the fucking neighbors.” He grips Phil’s hips, digging his thumbs in a bit harder than he normally would, and he would probably feel bad if he had the brain capacity to think about it.

“Nah, I don’t think I will,” Phil says smugly.

Dan wants to roll his eyes in annoyance, but Phil just feels too good. He can’t focus on anything but tight, wet heat and searing blue eyes. “God. Make me come,” he grunts, grinding up into Phil. They’d been having sex together long enough that Dan knows Phil doesn’t mind him being a little bossy.

Phil shakes his head though, grinning. “Me first,” he says, grabbing Dan’s hand and pulling it over to his neglected cock. Dan’s pleasantly surprised to find that it’s only flagged a little, still mostly hard. It only takes him a couple of strokes to get him back to full hardness, but then Phil whines like he’s in pain.

“What?” Dan asks, immediately releasing him and stilling his hips. “Are you okay?”

Phil pouts. “It’s getting all tacky and drying out,” he complains.

It takes Dan’s horn-driven brain a second to understand what he’s talking about. “Oh, hang on, let me-“ he reaches blindly until his hand discovers the discarded bottle of lube, and he pats Phil’s hip with his dry hand so he’ll climb off for a second. As Dan’s lathering himself back up, he notices Phil rubbing at his thighs. “You alright?

“Yeah. Little tired though. My thighs hurt.” Phil gives him an apologetic smile.

Dan returns the smile easily. “That’s fine. Do you wanna try this a different way?”

Phil gives him a sheepish look. “Do you mind?”

He’s so considerate. Dan cares for him more than he wants to admit. “Not at all. How about...” he shuffles around on the bed, moving the pillow further up so that it’s out of the way. “Do you want to lay down or would you be okay on all fours?”

It’s funny, the horny expression that crosses Phil’s face as he considers the options. “I think... for now I think I'll lay down. I’m so out of shape, and my legs already feel a bit like jelly.”

Dan giggles. “Alright. Well, get comfy, then.”

As Phil settles himself on his back, he seems to be mulling something over. “I do want to try the- the other one. Like, some other time, obviously, but I do want to try it like that as well.” He sounds nervous, even shy, and Dan feels it settle somewhere in his chest.

“Sure,” he says quietly. He settles himself between Phil’s legs, running his hands up Phil’s calves and stopping at his knees. “You think you can be flexible for me?”

Phil nods. Dan helps him settle back, then brings both of his legs over Dan’s shoulders. Phil looks a little ridiculous, but he grins up at Dan, so Dan smiles back, tilting his head to kiss his knee. He curses himself afterwards, at the soft look Phil gives him. He’s probably already thinking of ways to distance himself from Dan, to tell Dan that they really should just finish the stupid photo series then never speak to each other again.

At least, that’s what’s running through Dan’s head at first. After a moment, however, Phil distracts him again by speaking in a soft voice.

“Are you okay?”

Dan can’t help but smile down at him. “Yeah. Just thinking.”

Phil tilts his head. He looks like a curious puppy. Dan keeps that thought to himself.

“About what?”

Dan nearly freezes at the innocent question, but reminds himself to stay calm to avoid suspicion. Instead of telling the whole truth, he smirks, reaching down to press his fingers to Phil’s perineum. “You,” he half-lies.

Phil smiles, his eyelids fluttering shut as Dan applies gentle pressure. “Mm. Might wanna start doing me instead of thinking about me, Howell. Running out of time, here.”

Dan knows that Phil’s just joking about it being late, but that cuts deep. He really is running out of time, already. This may be the last time he ever gets to have Phil like this, even if it’s technically the first.

“Hey,” Phil murmurs. Dan’s eyes refocus on him, and Phil smiles, a little twitch of his lips. “Come back,” he says.

Dan smiles at him. “I’m here,” he replies.

Phil reaches up, stroking Dan’s arms in gentle sweeps. “No. You were stuck in your head. Get out of there, come be with me for a little while.”

It’s stupid, but for a moment Dan thinks he might cry.

Instead, he leans down, pressing a kiss to Phil’s mouth. “I’m with you,” he murmurs, reaching down to line himself back up.

Phil gasps against his mouth when Dan presses back inside, but it’s a good noise, Dan thinks. “Mm,” Phil hums. “This is better.”

“Yeah?” Dan asks, grinning.

Phil nods, twirling his fingers around a curling piece of Dan’s hair. “I can feel you even deeper like this,” he murmurs, sounding inexplicably fond.

Dan makes a noise that’s somewhere between a whine and a whimper, and Phil tugs at his hair, pulling him down for a kiss. Dan slows his thrusting to a grind so they don’t knock their teeth together too much, and Phil opens his mouth up for him with a soft noise.

It’s softer like this, Dan realizes. They’re slow and careful as they drag fingers over damp skin and press kisses to any place they can reach. Dan’s never been a fan of the term, but this feels more like making love than anything he’s ever heard described in any movie or book.

He’s quick to bat that thought away though. If there’s one thing he understands about their arrangement, it’s that this is temporary.

He doesn’t want to think about that right now, though. Not when Phil is squeezing around him so tightly and he’s making these sounds, like he feels just as good as Dan does. So instead he does what any sensible person would do, sitting up and reaching down to take Phil’s dripping cock in his hand.

Phil keens, and Dan hides his pleased smile against Phil’s knee. “Good?” He asks softly.

Phil nods jerkily. “Really good,” he breathes. “Just, ah-“ he flaps his hand vaguely. “Bit dry.”

“Oh, hang on.” Dan pulls his hand away in search of the lube, but keeps idly thrusting his hips while he searches the sheets for it. Phil whines, and Dan glances down at him with a smirk. “There it is,” he says, brandishing the little bottle triumphantly when he spots it near Phil’s shoulder.

“Pour some more on you, too,” Phil says, reaching up to hold his thighs close to his chest so Dan can pull out.

Dan nods, resting a hand against the back of one of Phil’s thighs as he dribbles a bit over the length of his cock, pushing back in gently and glancing up at Phil to gauge his reaction. “Is that good enough?” He asks.

“Yeah,” Phil nods, gripping at his own hair. “I just don’t like the drag when it starts drying out.”

Dan smiles. He loves learning all these little intricacies about his favorite person. “You like it wet, no shame in that,” he teases, pouring a dollop on his hand and tossing the bottle to the side before wrapping Phil up in a tight grip. He’s learned a few things about how Phil likes to have his dick touched over the weeks that they’ve been doing this, and nothing is better than getting to practice them all.

Phil blushes at what Dan said, but doesn’t argue. “God,” he murmurs instead. “I’m getting really close, baby.”

Dan’s whole body tingles at the pet name. “Okay,” he murmurs, using his free hand to drag Phil’s legs back over his shoulders. He kisses Phil’s knee, trailing across to nip gently at a bit of thigh. Phil jerks, and Dan smiles down at him innocently.

“Cannibal,” Phil says affectionately.

“You like it,” Dan argues.

Phil doesn’t deny it. Instead, he shifts his hips to grind up against Dan, his eyes fluttering closed as Dan tightens his grip, wanking Phil’s cock with purpose. Phil sighs, a little punched out noise that has Dan feeling desperate, his hips driving in faster and harder to reach that place that Phil’s at.

It doesn’t take long. Listening to Phil’s noises and feeling his tight, wet heat around Dan’s cock are recipes for an early finish, but Dan is still a little impressed at how long he’s managed to hold out. Still, he feels a little bad for how quickly he’s approaching that finish line, with Phil still whining and twitching beneath him, like he can’t quite reach it himself.

“C’mon, bub,” Dan breathes, nipping at Phil’s thigh again and twisting his wrist on an upstroke. “I want you to come first.”

“I’m trying,” Phil whines. “It’s- it’s too much, too-“

Dan gets a weird idea. Weird, because, well, it feels incredible to be buried inside Phil’s body like this, as close as two people can be, and honestly someone would have to fight to pull him away from that any other time.

So it’s weird that instead, he pulls out gently, shushing Phil’s noise of protest as he crawls down Phil’s body so that he’s level with Phil’s cock. “Oh,” Phil breathes when Dan ghosts his lips over the tip, dragging his mouth down lower to kiss and suck at his balls. His hands go exploring, searching lower until he finds exactly what he’s looking for.

Phil groans when Dan pushes two fingers inside, and Dan hears the complaint before Phil has a chance to make it. “Your hand’s too dry, Danny.”

“Shh, I know,” Dan placates him, pulling his hand out after a gentle prod around. He glances up at Phil for a second, and when he sees that Phil’s got his eyes closed, head thrown back, Dan grins. Phil’s a little on the shy side about certain parts of sex, and so he’s not sure how Phil would feel about this particular idea if Dan were to ask him.

So instead of asking with words, Dan gives a last gentle kiss to Phil’s balls, then kisses further down, slow enough that Phil could stop him if he wanted.

He doesn’t.

Dan reaches his destination and places a light kiss to the pink puffy rim before him, and he hears Phil’s sharp intake of breath.

“Dan,” he breathes, his voice tight.

“Can I?” Dan asks, excited. He loves doing this for people, even though it wasn’t something he was often allowed.

Phil seems to be struggling to decide. “I...”

Dan kisses him there again, gently. “I’ll be gentle, I promise,” he says softly, looking up at Phil with what he hopes are perfect puppy eyes.

Phil reaches down, brushing Dan’s damp, curling hair out of his eyes. “Yeah,” he agrees after a moment. “Just...” He looks embarrassed.

Dan thinks he gets that. He’s not usually shy about sex like Phil is, but he understands how nerve wracking this particular sex act is, especially with a new partner. “I’ll make it good for you,” he promises, grabbing Phil’s hand and pressing a quick kiss to his palm.

Phil rubs his thumb over Dan’s lips. “I know,” he says softly. He shifts to give Dan more room, and Dan takes that as an invitation.

He dives back in, gentle, just like he promised. He starts with kisses at first, just gentle brushes of his lips while one hand reaches up to wank Phil’s cock, which is still rock hard and hot. Dan slowly introduces a bit of tongue, just an occasional brush against Phil’s rim until he hears him whimper. Dan can tell without looking that it’s a good noise, Phil’s legs shaking with pleasure.

After that, Dan’s a little less cautious. He’s basically making out with Phil’s hole, so he fully commits to it, pressing his tongue in as far as it’ll go, using one hand to hold Phil in place. He struggles to get the position right at first, but then Phil’s hands appear, reaching down to hold himself open, giving Dan plenty of space to work. Dan glances up at him with a grin and a wink. “Thanks,” he mumbles against Phil’s puffy hole as he dives back in.

He laps and sucks and fucks him with his tongue, and eventually Phil is grabbing his hair, moaning loudly above him. Dan will pat himself on the back for this later, but right now he just really, really wants to make Phil come.

“Close,” Phil breathes. “Really fucking close.”

Dan doubles his efforts, wanking him fast and sucking hard and it takes just two, three strokes, and then Phil’s body is seizing up, tight like a wire before he finally releases with a long sigh.

Dan kisses his hole once more, nuzzling his thigh gently before kissing his way back up, lapping at the come cooling on Phil’s stomach just a bit, just enough that Phil groans and squeezes his eyes shut when he looks down and sees him.

Then, Dan decides it’s his turn. He’s hard and aching and ready to burst, but he’s polite enough to give Phil some space to recover. For a moment, at least, and then he’s tugging the condom off and swinging his legs over Phil, rutting his cock against the come smeared all over his stomach.

“Fuck, Dan,” Phil groans. “You’re gonna make me hard again.”

Dan shrugs. “That’s fine. We can go again. Maybe you can fuck me this time,” he says with a cheeky grin. He’s mostly kidding. He’s already feeling exhausted, and at this point he just wants to come his brains out and then immediately pass the fuck out for the night.

Phil seems to be on the same page. “Maybe another night,” he says vaguely, reaching forward and gripping Dan’s hips. “Come here, I’ll blow you the rest of the way.”

Dan smiles and crawls up Phil’s body to straddle his chest, holding his cock to Phil’s lips. “Here comes the airplane,” Dan says in a stupid voice.

“Shut up,” Phil laughs. He tugs Dan forward by his ass, holding his mouth open like a baby bird.

Dan really needs to stop with the childish references before he gives himself a complex.

Instead, he focuses on the feeling of Phil’s mouth. Dan thinks that he’s got this down to a science by now, knows all the right places Dan likes to have touched when he’s getting a blowjob, knows the exact pressure he can use when sucking to really make Dan’s eyes roll back in his head. It’s kind of perfect, if he’s being completely honest.

It doesn’t take him long, not with how long he’s been aching to come, and when he does it’s with a long whine and a full-body shiver. Phil swallows and gives his cock a sweet little kiss, looking up at him with this adoring smile.

“I love it when you do that,” he says.

Dan quirks an eyebrow. “Do what? Come in your mouth?” He smirks.

Phil rolls his eyes, pinching his naked hip in reprimand. “No. That cute little shiver thing you do when you come. It makes me feel like I did a good job.”

And that’s... really adorable, that Phil would even be worried about that.

Dan scoots himself down Phil’s chest so that he’s laying flat on top of him, then smashes their lips together messily. He can taste himself on Phil’s tongue, sharp and salty and a little bit gross. He still likes it though, probably more than he should. So he lets himself indulge for a while, relaxing his weight onto Phil’s body and plying him with kisses.

Eventually, Phil pushes him away a bit. “I’m covered in semen,” he says matter-of-factly.

Dan sits up, looking down at the mess now smeared across both of their chests. “I suppose we both are,” he observes. “Wonder what we ought to do about that.”

Phil smiles tiredly. “Can we just do a quick wash up? I’m really tired.”

“Sure,” Dan nods. He goes to climb off of Phil’s lap, when a thought hits him. “Should we do some more photos?”

Phil flinches. “Now?”

Dan shrugs. “Yeah. I mean... I’m all debauched, I reckon that’s what you’re going for, right?”

Phil stares at him for a long time. Dan feels his gaze like a brand, and it makes him twitch. Finally, Phil shakes his head. “No. I got enough photos for that part.”

“Oh,” Dan says slowly. “Okay.”

There’s a moment of silence as they stare at each other, and then Phil leans back, closing his eyes. “Can you go get something to clean us up with?” His voice is flat.

Dan’s heart squeezes. “Sure,” he whispers. He feels chastised, even if Phil really hadn’t said anything out of order. He climbs off of Phil gingerly, being careful not to touch him more than necessary. It feels wrong, now, to be this naked together, and Dan makes sure to grab his pants from the floor on his way out, as well a random shirt. It’s probably not his, but they’ve fallen into a habit of sharing clothes a lot lately so there’s a good chance that it might be.

He goes to the bathroom and wets a cloth, carefully cleaning himself up and dressing in silence. His heart is racing all of a sudden, like he’s two seconds away from a panic attack, and he really, really doesn’t want to deal with that on top of everything else right now.

Quietly, he returns to Phil’s bedroom with the damp cloth, hovering by the bed awkwardly, looking down at Phil, whose eyes are still closed. His breathing is too uneven for him to be asleep, but Dan feels strange, like he’s not supposed to speak to him when he’s like this. He tries not to think about which part of his childhood instilled this particular behavior.

“I can feel you staring at me,” Phil says suddenly, interrupting the weird, tense silence.

“Sorry,” Dan mumbles.

Phil blinks up at him, and Dan’s never seen him look so tired. Like the weight of the universe is clinging to his shoulders. “Clean me up?” He asks, voice soft.

Dan’s shoulders relax and he lets out a breath. “Yeah, course,” he murmurs. He drags the cloth over Phil’s chest and stomach, wiping away all the evidence of their activities, then carefully cleans up around his dick before going lower. Phil hisses, and Dan stops immediately. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, yeah. Just sensitive. Be gentle.” Phil looks at him with kind eyes, like he already knows that Dan will do his best.

“Yeah,” Dan agrees. He carefully cleans up the tacky, drying lube, and when he’s finished, he holds the cloth in his hand, slightly disgusted.

“Just toss it wherever,” Phil says, flapping a hand, uncaring. “It’ll get into the wash eventually.”

Dan at least has the decency to drop it far enough from the bed that there’s very little chance that either of them will step on it, but with empty hands, he’s suddenly unsure of his purpose. He shifts awkwardly near the door, hesitating. He wants to stay, but he’s not sure if he’s allowed. They don’t always sleep together after, well, sleeping together, but tonight... Dan really fucking wants to.

“Are you coming to bed or are you just going to stand there creeping?” Phil asks eventually, looking over at Dan like he’s gone crazy.

Dan could crumple with relief at that. “Yeah,” he says, making his way back across the room and sliding into bed next to Phil. “I wasn’t sure if, like, you wanted me to stay.”

Phil snorts. Dan tries not to be offended, since he doesn’t really know the reason for the rather unattractive sound. “I always want you to stay,” Phil mumbles, wrapping around Dan like an octopus once he’s settled.

“Me too,” Dan whispers, wrapping his arms around Phil’s waist. He’s clinging, but Phil is too, a bit, so Dan doesn’t feel too guilty. He does realize, however, that Phil is still naked. This feels like it needs to be said. “You’re naked,” he says softly, stroking Phil’s shoulder with gentle sweeps.

“Mm,” Phil hums. “Yeah. That okay?”

Dan snorts. “Of course. As long as you’re comfy.”

Phil nuzzles him then, like a proper nuzzle, and Dan knows he’s not going to be able to escape his very real feelings for much longer.

“Dan?” Phil says eventually, breaking the lull of almost-sleep Dan has fallen into.

“Hm?” Dan mumbles, his eyes already closed.

Phil’s quiet for long enough that Dan is mostly asleep when he speaks again. “You like me, don’t you?”

Dan hums, a sleep-drunk noise that’s barely coherent.

“Dan,” Phil says again, nudging him. “You do, right?”

“Mhm,” Dan mumbles, sighing noisily and snuggling in close to Phil. “Like you best,” he says nonsensically.

Phil makes a noise then, that Dan’s mostly-asleep brain deciphers as a pleased noise. He whispers something against Dan’s hair, but Dan loses it to the clutches of sleep.

~~~

When Dan wakes up, he knows something is wrong. It’s still dark out, but the bed is empty and the sheets are cold, and even as he tries to claw his way out of the haze of sleep, he knows that something about that should raise some alarm.

“Phil?” He calls, patting around on the bed for his phone. The screen is too bright when it powers on, showing a hideous three a.m. that makes Dan want to gag. But part of him, the part that’s spent maybe fourteen nights with Phil so far, is very concerned about this turn of events.

Quietly, as if there’s someone to wake, he crawls out of the bed, shivering in the chilled air. He quickly grabs a random blanket that’s thrown over the back of Phil’s desk chair, wrapping it around his shoulders as he goes in search of Phil.

A peek into the bathroom and kitchen has him coming up empty, so he journeys into the lounge, unnerved by how quiet and dark everything is. He shivers as he turns slowly in the space, and his breath catches when he sees movement out on the balcony.

He relaxes when he realizes that it’s Phil, and paces over to see what the fuck has him out of bed and in the cold, half-dressed at three in the morning. Dan taps on the glass door before he slides it open, making sure Phil isn’t startled by his presence.

It appears he needn’t have bothered, as Phil barely glances at him when Dan steps out on the balcony. Instead, he stares out at the sky before him, not sparing Dan a single look.

Dan can’t take the silence for long. “Having a nice freeze?” He jokes quietly.

Phil doesn’t laugh. His lips barely twitch. “Yeah,” he says flatly.

Dan shuffles, looking down at his feet. He’s already freezing, and he’s got far more layers on than Phil. Phil, who is only wearing a t-shirt and Sonic-printed pants that peek out from under his shirt just a bit. “Are you cold?” He asks softly.

“Why’re you out of bed?” Phil asks, ignoring his question.

Dan startles a bit at his tone. “I was looking for you,” he says, almost petulant. “I woke up alone, and I wanted to know where you were.”

“Well, you found me,” he says. He still doesn’t look at Dan.

“Yeah,” Dan says slowly. “Wishing I didn’t, to be honest.”

Phil finally glances at him, quirking an eyebrow. “Hm,” is all he says.

“Why’re you being a dick?” Dan asks bluntly. He’s always been one to get straight to the point, as he’s been told by many people in his life.

Phil sighs, settling back in his chair and closing his eyes. “I’m sorry,” he says, his voice low. “I don’t mean to be. I’m just tired.”

Dan takes a risk, stepping forward to stand between Phil’s knees. “So come back to bed,” he mumbles, nudging Phil’s knee playfully with his own.

Phil’s lips twitch in an almost-real smile, and Dan savors that victory while he can. This turns out to be a good thing, because when Phil opens his mouth, it’s not what Dan wants to hear. “You can go back to bed. I’m sorry if I woke you up.”

Dan frowns. “I don’t want to go back to bed unless you come too.” He sounds like a child, but he can’t help it.

Apparently Phil picks up on the whiny tone, as well. “Dan, I’m really not in the mood,” he sighs.

“In the mood for what?” Dan demands, his temper flaring.

Phil rolls his eyes. That pisses Dan off even more, if it’s possible. “To argue. Just, go to sleep, or watch tv, or something.”

Dan hates himself for it, but he feels rejected. “I’m not trying to argue with you,” he starts, wrapping his arms around himself as a gust of wind blows over the balcony. Phil shivers, and Dan’s heart clenches. “You’re cold,” he says gently.

“I’m fine.”

“Right.”

“Dan, just...” Phil sighs, rubbing his eyes.

Dan doesn’t want to hear what he’s about to say. “Do you want me to leave?” He asks suddenly, his stomach twisting with the thought. London at three in the morning was a terrifying place.

“Of course not,” Phil replies vehemently. “I want you to stay, I just...” he sighs, running his hands through his hair and making it stand up at funny angles. “My head’s being loud,” he murmurs eventually.

“Oh,” Dan replies. This is really the first time Phil has shared this side of himself, this side that feels pain and annoyance and discomfort.

“Yeah,” Phil says. “So I came out here to try and clear it.”

Dan feels guilty, suddenly. “And then I came out here and made it worse,” he fills in.

Phil shakes his head immediately, reaching out for Dan and gripping his hip. “No, you didn’t. I’m sorry I snapped at you.”

“It’s okay,” Dan mumbles. He hates his body’s natural reaction to this kind of stress, as he can feel hot tears pinpricking his eyes. He blinks rapidly, hoping Phil won’t notice.

Of course, Phil notices. “Come here,” he murmurs, pulling Dan in to sit on his lap.

Dan goes willingly, settling into Phil’s arms that wrap around him, one hand coming up to rub his back in gentle sweeps. “Sorry,” Dan mumbles, wiping at his eyes with the edge of the blanket.

“It’s okay,” Phil says softly. “I’m sorry I upset you.”

“You didn’t,” Dan immediately says. It’s a lie, but his natural instinct is apparently protect Phil first and then feel guilty about it later.

Phil kisses his cheek. “I know that I did,” he says gently. “I’m sorry.”

Dan stays quiet, nuzzling against Phil’s neck, curling up as if he can make himself smaller by sheer will alone.

They sit in silence for a long while and then eventually, Phil sighs. “We should go back to bed.”

“Is your head still loud?” Dan asks.

Phil pats his back, prompting him to climb off his lap. “It is, but it’s fine. I’ll go to sleep eventually.”

Dan doesn’t move from his spot, chewing on his lip as he considers something. He turns so that he’s facing Phil, offering a timid grin. “I think I have a better idea.”

~~~

“This is not exactly what I thought you had in mind,” Phil says, his voice sounding very skeptical.

Dan huffs. “Quit being a hater,” he says, snuggling back against Phil. They’re sat on the sofa, Phil leaning back against the arm with Dan tucked between his legs, his back pressed to Phil’s chest.

Phil kisses his neck. “Sorry. What’re we doing again?” He wraps his arms around Dan’s waist, squeezing him like a teddy bear. Dan doesn’t mind being that teddy bear at all.

“You’re gonna help me decorate my island and my house on the new Animal Crossing game,” Dan informs him, leaving no room for debate.

“And why are we doing this instead of sleeping?”

“Because you said you probably wouldn’t be able to sleep,” Dan says, rolling his eyes.

Phil kisses his neck again, and nuzzles at his shoulder, biting gently and playfully. “Okay, so instead of not-sleeping,” he says, a certain lilt to his voice. “Why are we doing this?”

Dan tilts his head to give him a look. “Because this is just a mindless little video game, and I think it would make you feel better to focus on something unimportant for right now. Something that’ll keep your brain busy but not in a bad way, you know?”

Phil looks at him for what feels like a long time before finally nodding. He kisses Dan’s cheek softly, lingering just a little. “Okay, fine. Let’s check out this island, then.”

~~~

“That is so tacky,” Dan complains.

“It’s not!”

“Phil, it doesn’t match.”

“So?”

Dan groans, crossing his arms petulantly. He’d handed the switch over to Phil when he realized that Phil was already familiar with the concept of Animal Crossing. He hadn’t played New Horizons yet, though, so Dan thought this was a perfect opportunity to get a taste of the game before he committed to buying it for himself.

“I’m gonna have so much to fix when you get done playing,” Dan complains.

Phil pinches his thigh. “Shut up, rat. Now where can I go with all these fossils? Should we sell them?”

Dan screeches, a fair impression of a pterodactyl. “No! Take them to the museum, you tit.”

Phil giggles behind him, and Dan feels it vibrate against his back. “Fine, fine. Where’s the museum?”

Sighing loudly in a very put-upon way, Dan guides him through the game to where his museum is located, screeching and complaining when Phil gets his lefts and rights confused and can’t figure it out. By the time Phil gets there, they’re both giggling uncontrollably, poking at each other repeatedly just to start laughing again. It’s so nice, Dan thinks. This is just what they needed. Even if it is nearly five in the morning and they’ve gotten absolutely no sleep, this is what they needed.

“Hey,” Phil says softly after a few minutes, once they’ve mostly settled down.

“Hm?” Dan replies, watching the screen as Phil makes Dan’s character run around in circles.

“Thank you, for this.” Phil’s voice is quiet, and it almost feels like too much, there in the darkness when they’re wrapped around each other like this.

“Of course,” Dan murmurs to him, tilting his head back and puckering his lips for a kiss. Phil grants him with a gentle peck, and Dan turns back to the game, pretending that the pointless kiss didn’t send an army of butterflies raging through his chest.

“You really knew exactly what I needed to calm down,” Phil says, sounding almost in awe of the fact.

Dan snorts. “Of course. You’re my best friend, Phil.” He hesitates, then, nervous that he may have crossed a line that he’s not ready to cross. “I mean- I may not be yours, and like, that’s fine, I just-“

“You’re mine, too,” Phil says quickly. Dan glances up in time to see Phil blushing. “You’re my best friend.”

They stare at each other for a minute that feels like forever, and then Dan clears his throat. “Right. Glad we got that cleared up,” he says, trying to joke.

Phil tightens his grip on Dan’s waist, and Dan tries to pretend that it doesn’t make his heart pound. “Should we go back to bed?” Phil says softly.

Dan smirks at that. “Round two?”

He feels a laugh vibrate against his back and a kiss pressed to the top of his head. “Don’t know about that, babe. I’m actually kind of exhausted.”

“Yeah,” Dan agrees. “It’s getting late. Or early, depending on how you look at it.”

Phil sighs, nodding. “And I’ve got to meet Martyn in the morning.” For all the time Dan has known him, Phil has never sounded so upset about meeting up with his brother.

“Well we definitely need to hit the sack, then,” Dan says. He pats Phil’s arm that’s wrapped around his waist and sits up. “C’mon, bub. To bed, to bed.”

Phil allows himself to be pulled off the sofa and down the hall into his room. Dan tugs Phil’s shirt off with no other intention than making Phil more comfortable, and Phil’s got a soft look on his face when his head emerges. Dan brings a hand up to rest at Phil’s neck, rubbing his thumb over his pulse gently. It’s a moment that feels like it’s suspended in time, their breaths evening out to match. Dan thinks that maybe, maybe this is what it would feel like if they were actually together. Maybe this hot air balloon feeling would be comfortable someday, if he was allowed to grow more used to it. As it is now, it’s so unfamiliar that Dan feels like he might choke with how overwhelming his feelings are.

“Dan,” Phil breathes in the limited space between their lips.

The moment is shattered, and Dan forces himself to pull away. “I’m tired,” he says. His voice is flat.

He doesn’t miss the hurt on Phil’s face, for the flash of a second that it’s there. It’s gone before he gets the chance to feel properly guilty over it, and Phil’s turning away, crawling under the sheets without a word.

Dan settles on the side he’s come to think of as his own, but there’s an undeniable tension in the air between them now. He pretends there’s not, reaching out and turning off the bedside lamp. “Goodnight,” he whispers once he resettles.

He’s greeted with silence.

~~~

The next morning, Dan wakes up alone.

The light is streaming in through Phil’s shitty blinds, and Dan groans out his discomfort, flailing about like he can will the sunshine away by sheer force alone. It doesn’t work, obviously, but his flailing about does bring his attention to the emptiness of the bed.

He sits up, rubbing the exhaustion out of his eyes with sleep-numb fingers. “Phil?” he calls out. His voice echoes in the quiet of the room.

When he doesn’t immediately hear a reply, Dan starts worrying, because of course he does. He’s never woken up totally alone in Phil’s flat. On the rare occasions when Phil isn’t still in bed with him, Dan always finds him in the kitchen or bathroom, or somewhere. But a quick search of the flat has him coming up empty and he’s trying not to panic, really he is, but he actually can’t help it.

He calms down a little when he notices a note pinned to the fridge. It’s a little ridiculous how relieved he is when he pulls it down to read it.

Dan- I would’ve texted but I didn’t want to wake you up. I’m just out to breakfast with Martyn. Help yourself to anything in the kitchen. I hope you’ll still be there when I get home. Phil

He’s signed the note with a heart beside his name, and Dan refuses to think about how that makes him feel. Instead he focuses on the last part. I hope you’ll still be there when I get home. The idea that Phil would still want to see him again, after the awkwardness of the night before, makes his heart pound. He feels almost sick with guilt over how he’d acted. But he had been so overwhelmed, with the sex and the emotions that came with it. It was no surprise that he was pushing Phil away by the end of the night.

Dan sighs, folding the note carefully and making his way back to Phil’s bedroom. He tucks the note into his backpack, and then he just sort of stops. He’s not sure what to do, alone in Phil’s flat. It’s not something that’s ever happened before, he realizes with a start. Of course he’s spent the night with Phil before, several times by now, but this is the first time he’s found himself waking up alone on a Saturday in the other man’s flat, with no real idea of when he’s coming back. It’s probably stupid, how much he’s already missing Phil, when he’s got no idea how long he’s even been gone.

It takes Dan a few minutes of searching, but eventually he finds his phone amidst the sheets, and he sighs when he doesn’t see any notifications. He debates with himself for a minute or two, but ultimately decides that yes, he is that pathetic, and opens his chat with Phil. All he does is type out a quick “good morning” before going to find a phone plug, a mocking thirteen percent glaring at him from the top of his screen.

He’s barely gotten the phone plugged in when it vibrates with a notification. It buzzes two more times before Dan manages to swipe over to the messages, and he grins when he sees what’s there.

Phil: hi! Phil: why did we stay up so late 😭 Phil: I swear I have some sort of weird sober hangover

Dan grins as he types out a response, leaning awkwardly on Phil’s desk as he does.

Dan: Idk bub I guess maybe you should’ve stayed in bed Dan: you know, instead of abandoning me

Phil: I had to meet my brother!

Dan: I’m naked though

It’s sort of a lie, since Dan is wearing a pair of Phil’s pants, but he could easily be naked, if he was so inclined.

Phil: ..... okay maybe I should’ve stayed at home

Dan smirks to himself. This part of their arrangement, at least, is easy.

Dan: where r u guys at

Phil: That cafe close to the park Phil: The one you said had hipster vibes

Dan: ew of course martyn would like that place

Dan’s never actually met him but from what he hears from Phil, Martyn’s definitely the hipster-y type.

Phil: You wanna come meet us? Martyn keeps asking about you

Dan: you want me to meet your brother?

He’s trying to be normal about this. Because really, that’s a normal thing. Friends do that. Friends meet their friends’ siblings and families all the time.

It’s the “friends” part that Dan is having trouble with, actually.

Phil: Yes.

Dan hesitates. That does sound kind of nice, actually, but something in him doesn’t really know what his answer should be. He knows what he wants it to be, of course. He definitely knows that.

He must take too long to answer, because suddenly his phone is vibrating in his hand, the constant vibrate of an incoming call. Of course it’s Phil, and of course Dan answers almost immediately.

“I still can’t believe you’re the kind of person who just calls when they don’t get a text back,” Dan says in lieu of a hello.

Phil sounds like he’s smiling when he replies. “Come to the cafe. I’ll buy you breakfast.”

Dan makes a considering noise, as if he’s not already digging around Phil’s dresser for something to wear. “Alright, fine. But I’m not putting out.”

Phil laughs. “Yes you will,” he says quietly. Dan wonders if Martyn can hear both sides of this conversation. “Now hurry up. I want another croissant, but I don’t wanna order twice.”

“Okay but I’m borrowing your clothes,” Dan says, tugging on a pair of dark grey sweats. He goes to the closet, looking through the selection with pursed lips.

“Fine,” Phil says, unbothered. “Wear something warm, it’s cold out.”

Dan smiles. “Okay. I’ll see you in a bit.”

“Bye, Dan.” The call disconnects with a click, leaving Dan to select a shirt in silence. He debates with himself for all of a minute before tugging at Phil’s hoodie from his university days, tugging it over his head easily. It’s hideous, but it makes him feel warm when he wears it, both literally and figuratively. It’s well worn with all the years of use it’s seen, but it also makes Dan feel a little possessive. As if anyone who sees him will somehow assume that he belongs to someone just because of a stupid sweater, with a university insignia on it that’s not his own.

He tells his brain to shut the hell up as he makes his way out of Phil’s flat, locking the door behind him with the spare key Phil keeps above the door. He considers slipping it into his pocket but figures that if he comes back it’ll be with Phil anyway, so it would be pointless to pocket the key.

It’s a short walk to the cafe he’s headed for, but he still tucks his AirPods in and scrolls through one of his many pretentiously named playlists until he finds one of his favorite Frank Ocean songs, one that’s really good to listen to while he walks. He hums along as he walks, stuffing his hands in his borrowed hoodie pocket. Phil wasn’t joking about the weather, and Dan’s already regretting his lack of undershirt as the wind nips at every bit of exposed skin.

When the cafe comes into sight, it’s a very welcome thing, and Dan stuffs his AirPods back in their case as he pushes the door open. There’s no happy little bell ringing out the sound of his arrival, not like the little cafe that he and Phil always go to on their own. Still, it’s a warm building, and somewhere in it is the promise of food and Phil, so Dan is pleased to be there anyway.

It doesn’t take him long to spot Phil and his brother sitting at a table towards the back of the cafe. And from the goofy look on Phil’s face, it didn’t take them long to spot him either.

“Hi,” he says when he reaches the table. He didn’t realize it until now, as he’s face to face with the infamous older Lester brother, but he’s nervous. He’s so nervous to meet someone that he knows is so important to a person who’s so important to him.

“Hi,” Phil parrots, sliding over and patting the space of booth next to him. “Cute top,” he smirks as he looks over Dan’s outfit, making Dan’s cheeks flame in mild embarrassment.

When Dan slides in, he offers a smile to the stranger across from them, unsure what to say. He turns to Phil with the intentions of making some sort of joke, but he’s thrown off track by Phil leaning in, planting a short kiss right on his mouth. Dan startles away, his heart racing as he shoots a panicked glance over to Phil’s brother.

Martyn looks completely unbothered, and more unsurprised than Dan thinks he’s really got a right to. “So you must be Dan,” he says, his tone neutral. He’s got a smirk on his face, or what Dan thinks might be one if his eyes weren’t also a bit smiley. “Unless my brother is just in the habit of kissing strange boys.” He sends Phil a funny look, his mouth doing a mimicry of Phil’s precious tongue bite thing.

“Er-“ Dan says with an awkward laugh. “Yeah, I’m Dan.”

Martyn reaches his hand across the table, and Dan accepts the handshake, still a little shaken by the weirdness of the whole encounter. He’s trying not to think about the other reason he feels a little shaken, or the way his lips feel decidedly tingly from Phil’s kiss.

“I’m Martyn, his brother. It’s nice to finally meet you,” Martyn is saying. Dan forces himself to pay attention. “Phil never shuts up about you.”

“Martyn,” Phil hisses. There’s a thudding noise and Martyn winces. Dan knows without asking that Phil just kicked him. Phil smiles sweetly at Dan, and Dan can’t help but lean into the warmth of his gaze. “What would you like for breakfast?”

“Hm,” Dan hums thoughtfully. “There was mention of croissants?”

Phil rolls his eyes, but nods. “I’ll go get you your usual carb selection. Scooch.”

Dan dimples up at him as he slides out of the booth so that Phil can get up to go order. As Phil passes him, Dan makes a split-second decision and kisses his cheek, his body desperate to release some of the affectionate energy he’s got stored up from a morning without him. “Get me something sweet too?” Dan requests as he slides back into the booth.

Phil grins at him. “You’ve already got me, though!”

Martyn makes a retching noise and Dan feels himself blush as Phil trots over to the counter to order their food. Dan forgets to be nervous about being left alone with Phil’s brother for a second, so wrapped up in watching the awkward hand gestures Phil makes as he selects an array of croissants and muffins for them.

His brief reverie is ruined when he hears Martyn clear his throat from across the table. Dan jerks at the noise, startled. Martyn sends him an apologetic smile, and Dan finds himself relaxing. Martyn really isn’t that scary in person.

“If he wasn’t so tall, I’d swear he’s a hobbit,” Martyn says, nodding towards his brother.

It takes Dan a minute to think about it, but he grins when it clicks. “Are we on second breakfast or elevensies?” he jokes.

Martyn laughs, seemingly pleased that Dan understood the reference. “Definitely elevensies,” he says.

Dan smiles, shaking his head in fond exasperation as he sneaks another glance at Phil. “He eats like he’s been starved for twelve years. I don’t know where he puts it all,” Dan jokes, rolling his eyes.

Martyn grins. “One of the world’s greatest mysteries,” he agrees. He glances over at Phil for a second, like he’s checking that he’s still preoccupied, and then he’s turning back to Dan, a thoughtful look on his face. “Phil seems really happy these days.”

“Yeah?” Dan says lightly, trying his hardest not to let that go to his head. He can’t hide the smile it causes though, but he tries, biting down on his lip hard.

“Yeah,” Martyn confirms. He taps the table a little, peeking over his shoulder at Phil again. Phil’s chatting with the barista as they prepare the drinks, and Dan just knows that Phil is trying to tell some weird coffee joke that he tells every time he’s in a coffee shop. Dan’s attention is brought back to Martyn when he speaks again, his voice quieter than before. “We never thought he’d get over his ex-boyfriend, to be honest with you. He was so hung up over him, even after the breakup.” Martyn shakes his head, taking a sip of his coffee with a pained look in his eyes.

Dan feels like he’s been doused in cold water all of a sudden, the thought of there being some other man, some other partner before him... But then again, he reminds himself bitterly, they aren’t partners. They’re just friends who... friends who sleep together sometimes. And that’s enough for Dan. But if that’s all they are, he can’t bear this- hearing about some ex-boyfriend that left Phil broken and obsessed. Some person out there that’s been lucky enough to have the parts of Phil that Dan himself isn’t allowed to have, and then wasted it. He can’t handle it.

Martyn doesn’t seem to notice the breakdown Dan is having, steamrolling right over the topic like it’s nothing. “So I’m sure you can imagine my surprise when Phil told me that he met someone.”

Dan startles at that. The way he phrased it makes it sound like Martyn has a very different perspective on their situation. Almost like Phil told him they were...

“Freshly made breakfast, per your request,” Phil announces as he appears beside the table, his arms laden with various treats and pastries.

“You say that like we don’t know they’re thawed out of a freezer every morning and then chucked in a microwave,” Martyn says, grinning.

“Well... they smell delicious, so surely that counts for something,” Phil says, flapping a hand, completely unbothered by Martyn’s comment. He starts sorting out the food, and Dan doesn’t realize he’s staring until Phil turns to speak to him, freezing when he catches the undoubtedly intense look on Dan’s face. “Are you okay?” Phil asks, his voice dropping to something soft.

Dan nods, trying to shake himself out of it. It’s fine. Everything is fine, so he needs to get a grip and get over himself. “Did you forget our coffee?” He asks, looking pointedly at the table.

Phil makes an offended noise, immediately followed by an “oh- yeah.”

Dan rolls his eyes, looking over at Martyn and shaking his head with a mocking thumb pointed in Phil’s direction. Dan can’t help but grin when Martyn laughs at that. “Scoot over, I’ll go get the coffee,” Dan says, patting Phil’s thigh.

Before he gets the chance to get up, a barista is appearing at their table with two cups of coffee, a small smile on their face. “You forgot your coffee,” they say pleasantly.

Phil looks embarrassed, but nods. “Thank you so much.” He pushes Dan’s cup to him as he gestures at his own head vaguely, saying, “one brain cell, and all that.”

The barista laughs and nods. “Same. Have a lovely day, guys.”

Dan waits until they walk back to the counter and out of earshot before he looks over at Martyn, nodding his head in Phil’s direction. “I can’t believe he told them he had one whole brain cell.” His voice is dripping with false disappointment, and he ignores the noise of protest from Phil.

Martyn grins though, clearly finding this banter delightful. “Right? He’s obviously only got half of one.”

“Hey!” Phil whines. “You can’t team up against me. It’s not fair.”

Dan reaches over and squeezes his knee, letting his hand linger for much longer than is actually necessary. “Don’t worry, bub. I have the other half.”

Phil looks surprised for a second, and Dan revels in the way that look melts into one of delighted affection. Turning to his brother, Phil sticks his tongue out childishly.

Martyn rolls his eyes, reaching over and snatching a croissant, dipping it in his coffee in a decidedly Lester fashion. “You’re a child,” he tells Phil mockingly.

Of course, Phil, ever the younger brother, retorts with a truly impressive: “I know you are but what am I?”

~~~

It’s nearly an hour later when Martyn makes his exit. He apologizes but says he’s got to get back home to his girlfriend, who has some kind of stomach flu. Phil mocks him for leaving her alone all morning, but Martyn has this oddly unbothered look, waving it off and saying, “she’s fine. Corny is a tough bird. She doesn’t need or want me to coddle her.” Phil says he can’t really argue with him there, and they laugh about it, making it clear that there’s something to this Cornelia person that Dan doesn’t quite get, having never met her.

They all clear off their trash and dishes from the table before Phil and Dan follow Martyn to the door. They pause as they stand outside, Martyn and Phil making plans to hang out again sometime the next week. Dan feels sort of awkward stood there, as they haven’t included him in this bit of the conversation, so he pulls his phone out, messing about on Twitter until he hears his name. He tunes back in, glancing up to find Martyn looking at him with a smile.

“Sorry, what?” he asks, feeling his face flush with embarrassment. God, way to look stupid in front of a stranger.

“I just asked if you’d be coming with Phil, when we go out next weekend,” Martyn says, with the air of someone who is not used to accepting no for an answer.

“Oh, er...” Dan looks to Phil helplessly, but Phil just shrugs. He’s smiling encouragingly, like he wants Dan to say yes, so Dan gives Martyn an awkward, uncertain nod. “Uh, sure. Where are you guys going?”

“We’re going with Martyn and Cornelia to have dinner and maybe clubbing a little bit,” Phil replies, giving Dan an apologetic look. He knows how Dan feels about clubbing, and something about that fills Dan with such an ooey-gooey warmth that he finds himself agreeing to it easily, despite how much he despises the club scene.

“Sure, I’m in. Sounds fun,” Dan says with a smile.

Martyn looks pleased, and Dan is surprised when he holds his arms out for a hug. “Cool. Listen, it was nice meeting you, mate. Be good to my little brother, okay?”

“O-kay,” Dan says, stuttering through the word just a bit. He can’t hide his surprise, though, and it only melts into confusion when Martyn pulls away with a wink.

“Bye, Phil,” Martyn says, hugging Phil next. He mumbles something in his ear that Dan doesn’t catch, but Phil’s ears go pink, and Dan decides that he’ll be pestering Phil about it immediately after Martyn leaves.

“Goodbye, Martyn,” Phil says, a little bit strained. He waves his brother off, reaching out and catching Dan’s wrist with the one not waving. Dan thinks he probably means to hold his hand but just doesn’t have the coordination to do both at once.

Dan watches Martyn walk away, then turns to look at Phil. “Your flat is also that way,” he points out, unnecessarily, probably, considering Phil looks like he’d rather choke than have to walk with his brother. Dan’s dying to ask what Martyn could’ve possibly said that would make Phil react like this, but he’s going to give it a moment.

“I know,” Phil says, petulant. He’s a lip twitch away from a full-on pout.

“So... shouldn’t we also be going that way?” Dan teases.

Phil suddenly shakes his head, turning and tugging Dan in the opposite direction. “Nope. We’re going to the park.”

“Are we?” Dan laughs, letting himself be towed along.

“Yep,” Phil says, popping the ��p’ as he says it. “Gonna buy some bread and feed some ducks.”

Dan shakes his head, adjusting the grip their hands are locked in so that their fingers are properly laced together. He tugs a little on Phil’s arm, slowing Phil down from where he’s walking a pace and a half quicker than Dan. “Bread is bad for ducks,” Dan remarks mindlessly.

“Hm,” Phil hums. He sounds distracted. “Fine, we’ll just look at the ducks.”

Dan shrugs. “Okay.” He waits for a beat. When it’s clear that Phil isn’t going to look at him or speak, Dan cracks. “So what did Martyn say?”

Phil’s face immediately flushes, an incredibly big tell for him. Dan bites back a laugh, squeezing Phil’s fingers reassuringly. “Nothing,” he says quickly. Another tell, and clearly he doesn’t know Dan very well if he thinks that Dan is just going to let it go.

“Come on,” Dan whines, tugging on Phil’s hand. “Tell me! I won’t leave you alone until you tell me.”

Phil rolls his eyes, tugging his hand out of Dan’s grip. Dan feels mildly offended for a moment, but he recovers quickly when he feels Phil’s arm wrap around his shoulders instead. “You’re not wearing anything under this, are you?” Phil asks as he tugs at a hoodie string, ignoring Dan’s pestering entirely.

“No, I’m not,” Dan says quickly, batting Phil’s hand away. “Quit trying to change the subject, I wanna know what he said.”

“It’s really cold out, Dan, you should’ve worn a t-shirt or something underneath this,” Phil continues, a little frown tugging at his lips.

Dan huffs. “I think you’re stalling,” he says.

Phil shrugs, looking away. His ears are still pink, and not the kind you only get from the cold. “I’m not,” he mumbles half-heartedly.

“Was it about me?” Dan asks, excited. He already knows it was, but the way Phil blushes confirms it for him. “It was! What was it?”

Phil sighs deeply. “If I tell you will you drop it?”

Dan nods, holding out his pinky for a sacred pinky-promise. Phil rolls his eyes, but locks their pinkies together anyway. “So?” Dan asks, giddy.

Phil’s quiet for a moment, pulling his arm away from Dan to shove his hands in his coat pockets. Dan feels the loss of his warmth immediately, and leans into his space to get a little of it back. “He told me that he was happy to see me happy,” Phil says quietly.

Dan’s heart squeezes. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Phil says with a nod. “And...” he glanced over at Dan, looking away quickly with another flush to his cheeks. “He told me not to screw it up this time.”

At first, Dan is surprised that Martyn would tell him not to screw this up, considering he clearly doesn’t understand the arrangement they have, but then his brain processes the implications of that. Martyn had told Dan that Phil had gone through a terrible breakup, that they thought he’d never get over it... but what he said to Phil makes it sound like he was the one at fault. And despite the fact that they aren’t actually dating, that Dan doesn’t actually really know how Phil is in a romantic relationship, Dan just knows that this cannot be true.

“You couldn’t,” Dan says, leaving very little room for argument.

Phil gives him a strange look. “What?”

Dan clears his throat. “You couldn’t screw this up. You know that, right?”

Phil looks at him like he doesn’t quite agree, but shrugs. “I thought that last time, too,” he mumbles.

Dan’s heart jumps. Phil’s never told him about his previous relationships, and this feels like that might be where this conversation is headed. Dan doesn’t know if he can stand that. It was bad enough to hear Martyn tell it, Dan thinks he might actually be sick if he has to hear Phil tell it as well.

“Phil,” Dan murmurs, reaching out and touching his arm.

“It’s fine,” Phil says with a shrug. “This time will be different.” He turns to look at Dan, a little smile tugging at his lips. “Because you’re different.”

Dan has to pretend that doesn’t make his insides set alight, but oh god, it does. “Right,” Dan murmurs. He doesn’t even know what Phil meant by it, really. Is this different because they aren’t actually dating? Is it different because Dan isn’t like Phil’s mysterious ex? Dan is desperate to know, but he’s afraid to ask.

He didn’t realize how far they’d walked, but his spiral of ruinous thoughts is cut off by Phil tugging at his arm and pointing. “Look! Ducks!”

Dan still has questions, he still wants to know if there’s something else going on between them, but for now he decides to ignore it. There will inevitably come a day where he can’t ignore it, but he decides that today is not that day, and instead allows Phil to drag him over to where the family of ducks is quacking about near the pond.

~

[timelesslords]

Off-Road Advantage

Read on AO3

In which the gang plays Mario Kart Wii

"Motherfucker!"

"Jeez McLean, language," Percy tutted, looking just as smug as Wario on the screen, celebrating Luigi hitting his banana. He looked less smug when, in the next moment, Piper sent a well-aimed green shell speeding towards his kart.

"Oh shit," he muttered, swerving to avoid it and subsequently falling off the track.

"You're such a hypocrite!" Piper cried, nearly sending Luigi off the edge as she jumped in indignation.

"Just ignore him, he gets weird about Mario Kart," Annabeth said. She was, predictably, winning; sitting on the floor directly in front of the sensor. "It's an only child thing."

"Okay, first of all I am not an only child. Tyson is my brother and technically so is every horse," Percy said, Wario safely back on the track and making up time surprisingly quickly.

"Horses can't play Mario Kart," Jason said. His eyes scrunched up in concentration, despite having been bullied into wearing his glasses by Piper 20 minutes earlier.

Right after making this astute point to Percy, Princess Peach sailed off the edge of the course. Jason sighed. He was, unfortunately, very terrible at Mario Kart. Camp Half-Blood had the privilege of owning a very abused Wii system, but Camp Jupiter had had no such luxury. As such, Jason had very little practice, and did not quite have the finesse required of a decade old Wii remote to make sharp turns.

"Whatever," Percy said, "The point is, I'm not an only child, and I don't get weird about Mario Kart."

"You absolutely get weird about Mario Kart," Annabeth said.

"Only because it's the only thing I can actually beat you at," Percy said, abandoning all pretense about having a normal attitude towards Mario Kart. Annabeth laughed.

"You can't beat me at Mario Kart," Annabeth said.

As if to prove her point, Yoshi sailed across the finish line, holding a solid ten second lead.

"Why the hell do you play with Yoshi, anyways," Piper asked, only a little bit bitter as Luigi rolling over the line in a respectable second place. Waluigi made third, half a second behind Piper. Princess Peach was in 12th, a half-lap behind the nearest computer.

"It's the most efficient," Percy said, nudging the back of Annabeth's head with his knee. She elbowed him in the leg in response.

"Look, the kart has a high drift, the speed is decent and Yoshi has off-roading advantage–"

"You only need off-roading advantage if you can't steer," Percy said. Jason promptly sent Peach flying into a patch of dirt.

"I can steer just fine, it's about not losing acceleration. It's simple math."

"You did math to pick your player and I'm the one who's weird about Mario Kart?"

"You guys are both weird," Piper said, patting Jason's arm sympathetically as the last NPC crossed the finish line, denying Peach a chance to complete her race for the third time in a row.

"You know what, just for that we're doing Rainbow Road," Annabeth said, wielding her player 1 remote like a knife. Piper and Percy groaned.

"What's Rainbow Road?" Jason asked nervously.

"I'm sorry babe," Piper said.

"Yeah Jason, I'm sorry my girlfriend is a sadist," Percy said. Annabeth elbowed at him again, but Percy was expecting it this time and managed to dodge.

The screen surveyed the Rainbow Road course, in all it's twisty, no-railing, rainbow glory.

"Oh no," Jason said sadly.

"Think of who you're hurting with this, Annabeth," Percy said, "Jason doesn't deserve this."

"Jason is necessary collateral damage. Sorry, Jason."

"It's alright. I lose every course anyways," Jason said, sounding very resigned to an unenjoyable four minutes.

"Your biggest issue is that you turn too hard, you only need to go 45 degrees for a light curve, not a full 180," Annabeth said. The course counted down to one, and Yoshi shot forward ahead of everyone, already pulling a lead.

"Don't keep bringing math into this," Piper groaned, tossing a green shell in Annabeth's general direction. It sailed harmlessly off the side of the course.

"It's the easiest way to explain it!" Annabeth protested.

Jason experimentally turned the remote a fraction of his usual degree. Peach skirted along the edge of the track, but mercifully did not fall.

"See, it worked," Annabeth said, biting her lip as Yoshi made a tight turn.

Another kart bumped into Jason's, and Peach rocketed off the side of the track.

"Kind of worked," Annabeth amended, "That wasn't about the steering."

"I think Jason is just cursed," Percy said. Wario was pulling a solid 5th place, having been hit by several shells right out of the gate. He was gaining speed though, and coming up on some item boxes.

"I think I just suck," Jason said, as the cloud fairy dropped him back on the track in his usual 12th place.

"You just need practice," Piper said, rather generously. Luigi was in second place, not too far behind Yoshi, but far enough that she would need an item or a major fuck-up on Annabeth's part to make first.

"You need a Bullet Bill," Percy said, crashing into an item box.

"What's that?" Jason asked, but Percy was too busy laughing to answer. His item had settled on a blue shell.

"Percy, if you send that at me I swear I will break up with you," Annabeth said, sounding deadly serious as Yoshi passed into his second lap.

"No you won't," Percy said cheerfully, clicking the appropriate button. The shell whizzed away, and Annabeth sighed deeply.

"I hate you."

"No you don't."

"In this moment? Yes I do."

The blue shell circled around Yoshi once, then slammed down into his kart. Piper was close enough to get caught in the blast, and she groaned loudly.

"Fuck you Percy," She said, shaking her controller, trying to revive Luigi quicker. It was no use; Wario sped past the two lopsided karts, Percy laughing all the while.

"Your days are numbered, Jackson," Annabeth said dryly.

"Ooh, we're doing last names now Chase?" Percy taunted, unaffected by her tone. He seemed to be thoroughly enjoying Wario's lead, making him do a rather excessive flip off one of the ramps.

Meanwhile, Jason had managed to snag a Bullet Bill in an item box, but when it dropped him off at the end of his run, Princess Peach was still in last place.

"Aw man," Jason sighed, dejected.

"Dude, I'm about to lap you," Percy said, frowning at Jason's quarter of the screen.

"I keep falling off," Jason said.

"Try slowing down," Annabeth suggested.

"That sounds counter-productive."

"You're only falling because you can't control the kart at the velocity you're hitting," Annabeth said, knowledgably, "If you slow down a bit it'll be easier to steer."

"Are you sure you aren't using the remote Leo junked out?" Piper asked, risking a glance at Jason's remote. It was grungy and beat up, but didn't look any different than the other equally grungy and beat up remotes.

"I think I'm just not built for this."

"Jason Grace. Son of Jupiter, Praetor of Rome, Titan Slayer. Bested by Mario Kart Wii," Percy said, as he lapped Jason's kart.

"It's hard!"

"Don't worry babe, I'll get him back," Piper said, also passing Jason, only she had a red shell in store. She shot it at Percy and it hit it's target easily. She slammed into Percy's kart for good measure, and Wario ricocheted off the course.

"I probably deserved that," Percy said glumly.

"You definitely deserved that." Annabeth said.

"Can we do a course with walls next?" Jason asked, driving Peach at a snail's pace, making every turn but not gaining any ground.

"Yeah, we wouldn't want Annabeth's off-road advantage to go to waste," Percy said.

"Excuse me, I haven't fallen off this course once," Annabeth said primly, getting a mushroom and using it to overtake Piper seconds before they both crossed the finish line.

"How the hell do you come in first every single time!" Piper exclaimed, throwing her remote down on the couch cushion in frustration.

"Math," Annabeth said, stretching triumphantly as Yoshi took a victory lap.

"It's literally just dumb luck," Percy said, rolling over the finish line in 5th place, "I think Connor Stoll rigged player one to always win."

"I can beat any of you with any remote," Annabeth said, waving her hand dismissively.

"Well, we all can beat Jason," Percy said.

Peach was once again cemented into 12th place as the last computer-controlled kart crossed the finish line.

"I could beat you in a real fight," Jason said, but it came out particularly half-hearted, what with Peach crying into her hands on the screen.

"Nah, you couldn't," Percy said cheerfully, "Though, if we wanted to test that–"

"No," Piper and Annabeth said, simultaneously.

"Relax! I was going to say we should play Smash, I know it's around here somewhere–"

"Oh, you are so on." Piper said, picking up her controller again.

"What's smash?" Jason asked, apprehensive.

"It's easier," Piper promised.

"Can I fall off things?"

"Mm, only about half of the time. You can choose someone who flies, though."

Jason's eyes brightened.

"I like flying."

"Just think of it like this," Percy said, clapping Jason on the shoulder, "You can't be worse at this than you are at Mario Kart."

"That's good enough for me."

[frustrated-writer-skyeknight]

HiJack AU - Rise of the Guardians Plotbunnies

Mushroom Hut

Toothless, sleeping by a fireplace...

Hiccup: See? I told you it was bigger on the inside.

Jack: ... Do I get my own room?

Jamie: *places hand on the Fun Sprite's shoulder* Jim and I will work on it. Just tell me how you want it; might take a while, though.

Jim: *snorting* I'm sure there's space for him in Hiccup's room... Might be hard with the attachment when you made into your own room, though.

Hiccup: *glares at Jim and reaches out to grab him*

Jim: *Snickering and deftly dodges him*

Astrid, aside: Jim! Dimitri, teleporting in. Bad episode, come quick.

Jim: *escapes, for good reason*

Jack: Uh...

Jack: Should we help?

Hiccup: Based on experience? Darkness is tricky business. Dimitri and Jim has special attachments, so it's usually okay when you get them together.

Jack: Must be nice.

Hiccup: Yeah, well...

Jack:

Jack: Why are you looking at me like that?

Hiccup: Uh

Jamie: *coming to the rescue* So Jack, why don't we talk about your room? What do you want in it?

Jack: An Ice skating rink.

PAQ 

(Not really FAQ [Ask box is empty and lonely lol], because you know, it’s not even asked never mind frequently. So, like, it would be... “Probably Asked Question” to yourself that I’m guessing)

What do their rooms looks like?

Do other Sprites have huts like these?

Yes and no. 

Yes, other Sprites can create their own homes too. Eugene and Punzie shares a hut at a cluster of rocks hidden through a waterfall. Although not that it needs to be hidden, since it is invisible to mortals anyway. But just because it’s not seen doesn’t mean noises aren’t heard.

So their location is peaceful and quiet.

No, it’s not like the ones the aides have. Whatever size it looks like from the outside is the same size for the inside.

If they wanted to, could they let mortals in?

Under special circumstances, and with the permission of the Guardians.

What is distinct about their rooms?

Hiccup, has a book case, some of Jim's tools and equipment since he helps with his projects sometimes, and his bed and Toothless's carpet spot.

Jack, an ice skating lake, snow mound for impromptu snowball fights, and a tree with a hammock where he sleeps.

Dimitri, brightest room in the hut, ironically. Helps him balance out the darkness when he returns home. His bed is the largest, cause in especially bad episodes, he needs a cuddle pile with everyone. In normal episodes, Jim is enough. A dreamcatcher from Sandy and Manny helps all the Aides, but it's placed in his room since he needs the protection most.

Jim, it used to have a bed but took it out since he normally stays in Dimitri's room. His hoverboards and the different versions of it, in miniature size since he always uses the latest one he crafted. A work table with different schematics, along with one of North's sleigh. He helps repairs and maintenance.

Astrid, half of it is like a training gym, the other half is homey stuff. She cooks most of the time so the kitchen is in her room, and Jim sometimes helps her out.

Jamie, like a vast sky, with a rainbow and vast sky for a ceiling despite being indoors. His bed is on literal cloud nine, his carpet like reflects his dreams. Astrid loves staying inside and literally watch him sleep.

Jack, Manny's Aide

Hiccup, Aster's Aide

Dimitri, Kozmotis's Aide

Jim, North's Aide

Astrid, Thiana Aide

Jamie, Sandy's Aide

For Aged Up Jamie, I sorta based the outfit on Jack's sister's outfit. I gave him trousers so it won't look like a dress and added a sash.

The thing behind Dimitri is a globe similar to North's, except it tracks the dark minions and lights in particular they target for Nightmares.

Astrid has the colors of the guardian she's aide to, which is Thiana.

Jamie is practicing his sand manipulation here.

[scriptaed]

fake it ‘til you make it.

genre: crack/fluff; god of destruction!joon; 

pairing: namjoon x reader;

length: 1.7k;

synopsis: in a desperate attempt to impress his crush, your then-admirer-now-boyfriend, namjoon, had once made a bold claim to be somewhat of an extraordinaire in the field of culinary arts; and although his late night cram sessions through “cooking 101″ books were enough to woo you one year ago, the truth behind his shoddy skills are put to the test when he’s forced to prepare dinner for the upcoming anniversary... and from then on, it’s only a matter of time until you discover the origins of his nickname: the god of destruction. 

“See? I can make it through a meal without breaking anything,” Namjoon smiles jubilantly with the apples of his cheeks raised and dimples appearing alongside them. Ever-so-cautiously placing his utensils onto the burgundy napkin neatly folded by his plate, your boyfriend of nearly one year slumps back into his chair with a sigh of relief. “Service is great, food is delectable, a perfect way to wrap up our anniversary, yeah, babe?”

“Yeah… except, you know who could cook an even better dinner for our anniversary?” you slide into the recurrent topic with a sly grin that creeps its way onto your lips. 

The panic that flashes across his eyes when he picks up on exactly what you’re about to bring up only cracks you up—quite evident by the sudden stretch of your lips from ear to ear. Covering that bewildered look of his that you’ve become accustomed to, he rubs his temples as if to ease the throbbing pain of trying to escape the own trap he had laid before him almost exactly one year ago. “Oh, no, b-but—”

“—you!” you exclaim almost too cheerfully for Namjoon’s profusely lacking enthusiasm. “Before we even started dating, you’ve always tooted your horns over just how proficient your kitchen skills are, so I’m sure you can make something even better than this, yeah?”

“Better than this?” he points at the plate he had practically licked clean, eyes widening in horror after just fathoming a challenge against a Michelin starred chef. When your boyfriend catches the quirk of your brow, however, he quickly recomposes himself and his falter. “I-I mean, I could, yeah, probably—a-and I would like to—but aren’t you busy next week?”

“I’m sure I can find some time for you,” you add sweetly, just to coax him further, “especially if my baby is cooking dinner for me!”

“Then why are we celebrating early today?” he quickly rebuttals. 

“Why not?”  you shrug. “The more food, the merrier. Isn’t that what you said when you asked me out and baked me those cupcakes?”

“I-I might be busy next week, though.” 

The excuses are flying in double-time and you almost feel guilty for openly enjoying the bead of sweat that drips down his forehead. 

“That’s not what you told me last week,” you let out a wry laugh, leaning back into your chair and counting down the time left until your boyfriend would have to soon confess his first and only lie of the one-year-long relationship. Crossing your arms, you begin to count internally, “look, babe, it’s okay if you can’t one-up this. Hell, it’s okay if you can’t even cook—”

“—I’ll cook—”

“—it’s okay if you’ve been exaggerating all this time and—” the conversation comes to a standstill when the both of you blankly stare at each other, blinking and registering what had just slipped from his lips “—you’ll cook? You’re accepting the challenge?”

“Y-Yeah,” he chuckles nervously as he forces an outstretched, pressed grin that somehow only exacerbates the frenzy of his mind. His doe-like eyes blink innocently at you, alert and daring yet too familiar to someone like you, his girlfriend, to easily recognize as impending doom. “I’ll cook for you. Haha… yeah, no problem.”

Namjoon gives you one last nervous smile that serves himself more comfort than you, his intended target, as he leans forward to down himself another drink of red wine. His hands shake and the alcohol quivers; and as if to foretell the future, the glass slips from his grip and shatters on the black granite floor.   

“Aw, shit.”

-

...so here he is, one week later, in the kitchen of your apartment, staring at the daunting ingredients sprawled across the tabletop. 

“You know, you really don’t have to do this. I’m hungry, you’re hungry, we could just go out for dinner after I shower,” you stick your head out from behind your bathroom door and Namjoon’s head shoots up as if he had been caught in the middle of some act. 

At this point, the guilt that had accumulated enough for you to retract your previous goal of exposing his shoddy attempt to impress you. Initially it was funny to watch him struggle to match his bold claims, but the guilt incessantly ate at you with each of the passing midnights where you would catch him burying his nose in a book whose title you could barely make out to be “Cooking 101.” 

“Oh, no, no, no. I-It’s okay, baby,” he stutters, tilting to the side to greet you with a prim smile that starkly contrasts his words of affirmation. “I’ve got everything under control. Go shower now. A delicious dinner will be ready before you even know it.” 

“...alright,” you say reluctantly, “well, don’t burn down the kitchen while I’m gone.”

“Oh, c’mon!” he raises his hands up in defeat. “Who do you think I am?” 

His answer arrives without a single beat of hesitation, “the God of Destruction.” 

“Psh, alright, well,” he gasps, clearly baffled as he crosses his arms and nods his head in submission. “Okay, fine, but I’ll have you take that back after I’m done cooking!” 

“Alright,” you sing as you slowly disappear behind the bathroom door, “best of luck!” 

Having taken a gander at his attire tonight—which you figure to be totally excessive as he stands there in your cramped kitchen, decked out in a black coat akin to that of a sushi chef that he must have found online—you start to regret having not taken a more direct approach at forcing him to cough up a confession. Well, at least now you know just how dashing your man looks in black. 

“Oh yeah, black is totally your color babe—” you peek your head back out only to catch Namjoon nearly tossing what appears to be a takeout box right onto the floor and redirecting his popped eyes to the one who had just ambushed him. Caught red-handed—with cheeks that are equally beet red—your boyfriend twiddles his thumbs with a sheepish smile evoked by a two-hit combo of your sudden compliment and his seemingly foiled tactics. As guilty as you felt, you can’t help but internally snicker at having just discovered his scheme for tonight; and before you disappear into the shower once and for all, you grant the poor boy mercy with one smug remark, “I sure hope I don’t have too many dishes to wash tonight…”

Your boyfriend may have been a clumsy man with skills in everything but culinary arts, but he is definitely not a dumb nor shameless man at that; because when you return to a subpar scent of savory soup and a concoction of spices that has your tastebuds confused, you successfully spot a pile of dishes in the sink and an untouched takeout box. 

“Here you go, babe…” Namjoon mumbles, head hanging low in shame and eyes following your footsteps as you shuffle towards him and lean onto the kitchen island. 

As adorable as his puppy-like state is, it almost makes you sad knowing just how much of a hand you had in the struggle you’re witnessing right before you. Hand cupped under his chin, you gently lift his sights until his half-lidded eyes are on yours. “And what lovely dinner do we have here? It looks even better than what we had last week!” 

“You don’t have to lie…” he frowns, crossing his arms and sighing loudly. “So you knew all this time?” 

“Knew what?” you smile innocently. 

“You know,” he tries to imply but groans when you just blink at him in silence. “Okay, fine, I’ll confess. I was lying about my skills this whole time. I’m terrible at cooking. I can usually bluff my way through everything but I always end up burning something in the kitchen!“ 

“Well, that’s not very surprising, is it?”

“Yeah, but I—” he sighs heavily “—after you told me how much you enjoyed desserts, I just wanted to impress you somehow. I didn’t mean to drag it on for one year… I’m sorry.”

“Aw,” you can’t help but laugh, “it’s okay, babe. It’s not that serious. Plus, you really think I wouldn’t know?”

“So…” he presses his lips into a thin line. “You knew about those cupcakes? That I wasn’t the one who baked them?”

“Joon… those are from my favorite cupcake store down my street. I introduced them to you,” you laugh at the way he ruffles his hair and groans. “Hey, at least you were honest enough to confess and even went through with cooking something for tonight! So what do we have here, Chef Joon?”

“Ugh, I feel so stupid,” he grumbles, tousling his hair in all directions one last time before pointing lifelessly at the plate on the tabletop. “One Michelin-outdone mushroom risotto…  one intact kitchen… and one subpar but loyal and honest boyfriend with only good intentions…”

“Might as well add humble to that last one,” you chuckle when he only forces a weak, clearly offended smile. “Let’s see how this Michelin-outdone risotto tastes, yeah?” 

Taking a spoonful of the risotto, something strikes to you as odd… maybe it’s the gooey texture, maybe it’s the tinge of a scent that doesn’t seem to belong in risottos, or maybe you’re merely making presumptions based off of your boyfriend’s tendency to mess things up in the kitchen. Namjoon’s eagle-like eyes watch you and every hint of emotion on your face intently as you catch a whiff of the incoming risotto. Sheer worry is plastered across those wavering orbs of his that must be chanting words of affirmation to himself internally; not wanting to prolong the salt on his wounds, you shove the spoon into your mouth. 

Ah, the God of Destruction has done it once again. 

“Oh… yum,” you force yourself to gulp down the food meticulously made of love before giving him a half-smile and bringing him into a chaste kiss. “I can definitely tell my baby made this for me. Thanks, Joon, I really appreciate it.” 

“It actually tastes good?” he frowns when you just grin at him. “Wait, no, what do you mean you can tell I made this for you?” 

“Well… see for yourself.”

Quirking a brow at your suggestion, your boyfriend leans in for a spoonful before grimacing at his own plate of love.

“Aw, shit. I mixed up the salt and sugar, didn’t I?”

[blackcloverdatabase]

English Translation of Novel 3: Chapter 2 – The Man Known as Julius (Part 2 of 2)

Here’s the second half of the last untranslated chapter from Book of Yuno! More Julius, Yuno, Jack, and Charlotte goodness, plus Mereoleona and Marx!

With this, Book of Yuno is now fully translated!

--- The Man Known as Julius (Part 2) ---

And so, in days that followed, they ran into no troubles at all. The days passed by rather smoothly…… Well, that may depend on your definition of “smooth”. As Yuno predicted, Jack and Charlotte frequently dropped by the lake, Graham still didn’t get along with Julius, and each time that happened, Bell would say something insensitive, so Yuno’s training kept getting interrupted. Though their troubles didn’t grow, his worries did.

Nevertheless, Graham’s wounds healed well, and the amount of time he spent near his parents’ tombstone steadily decreased. It would be a little lonely once they do, but, at this rate, they will be able to return Graham to the wild in a few days.

‘I have to find a safe place for him away from humans as soon as possible……’ Yuno thought as he and Bell were shopping in the village of Tonan. It was still early afternoon.

“Oh, aren’t you Yuno-kun?”

Yuno heard a voice call back from behind him as he was walking. When he turned around, he saw a man with his blue hair cut like a mushroom, standing there with a smile.

“Yes. Umm, if I recall, you use communication magic…...”

“Ah, sorry. I haven’t introduced myself yet. I’m Marx Francois. I’m the Wizard King’s aide.”

He said with a gentle smile on his face as he approached Yuno, seemingly wanting to chat with him.

“I sure do meet a lot of Magic Knights when I’m in an area where patrols are emphasized. Why, just yesterday, I met Captain Jack. A ha ha, it’s surprising to see him buying vegetables like any other normal human being!”

‘I’m still surprised he bought them for Graham……,’ of course, Yuno didn’t say this out loud, instead opting to match Marx’s tone of surprise.

“I’m surprised. I guess that means he must cook, too.”

A more suitable reply. He then tilted his head and said,

“So, what are you doing here, Marx-san?”

“Surveying the field and intelligence gathering. I wanted to see the state of affairs of all areas that have been targeted by those bandits, and I was going to convey my findings to the Wizard King, but…… ah, no, sorry. The chain of command a transmission is supposed to go through got messed up.”

Marx paused for a bit as if to reorient himself.

“For various reasons, the notification that was supposed to go out to each squad was delayed, but half a day ago, we successfully quashed the bandits.”

“……Huh?”

Yuno couldn’t help but stutter. It’s true that a few days have passed since the Magic Knights were deployed to suppress the bandits, so it was only a matter of time before they would completely quash them, but……

“That’s rather sudden. Incredibly so.”

“Yeah. Since it was possible that the Original Sin was involved in this case, we were searching more cautiously than usual, but…...”

Marx’s face stiffened.

“……Captain Mereoleona said “How many days does it take you to capture a few petty thieves!” and kicked the knights who were investigating into high-gear. I was also participating in the search, and it wasn’t long before those bandits were completely annihilated. A few bandits may have escaped, but it’s just about over now.”

‘I feel sorry for those bandits……,’ Yuno thought to himself as he quietly put his hands together in prayer for them.

“However, when we confiscated their belongings, we didn’t find any copies of the Original Sin. Maybe those rumors about them having one was fake, but it’s possible that one of the bandits who escaped ran away with it…… there are still many things we are uncertain about, so I came here in the hopes of finding some clues, but I’ve found nothing so far.”

“……I see. Thank you for all your hard work.”

Yuno thanked Marx while he internally let out a sigh of relief. Now that those bandits have been caught, this area should be safer now. Since a few bandits escaped, the patrols will probably continue for a little while longer, but the frequency of those patrols should decrease. That means it will be easier to take care of Graham. Yuno continued to feel more and more relaxed, even faintly considering taking a stroll through town, but then Marx called his attention as he put his hand in his breast pocket.

“Ah, wait a second! I’m sorry to ask you this so suddenly, but do you know anything about this magic tool?”

“………!!”

Yuno’s and Bell’s eyes widened. They couldn’t believe what Marx was showing them. What he held in his hand was a red jewel, the very one which wards evil away.

“……Marx-san, where….did you……?”

Marx felt a little uneasy about how strongly the two reacted, but he answered their question.

“Huh……? Captain Jack gave this to me yesterday. He said he felt ill when this tool was active. He thought it might be dangerous, so he wanted me to investigate it.”

“…….Did he say where he found it?”

“Ummm……. I didn’t ask for the details, but if I recall, it was in some cabin up in the mountains.”

Yuno had a bad feeling about this.

“I’m going to take this to the Magic Tool Research Institute, but you go on a lot of special missions, so I thought you might know something about this…… w-wait!? Where are you going!?”

Yuno ignored Marx’s pleas as he used his wind magic to fly to the lake. Jack found the jewel yesterday. The bandits were captured half a day ago. Yesterday, he was only with Graham in the morning, and Julius said he was only with Graham briefly in the early afternoon. It was probably after that when Jack found the jewel. After that, it was possible that runaways from the bandits’ hideout may have passed by the lake…… If they did, Graham had nothing to protect him. They might have eaten him. They might have taken him so that they could sell him. There were all sorts of things they could have done to him.

Maybe it was too early to start worrying, but that was the place where Graham and his parents were attacked before. It was possible that those bandits have used that cabin as a rest stop before. If the remaining stragglers go there to rest……

Yuno felt his agitation increase as he sped to Graham’s location without care for anything else.

“……Graham!!”

Yuno shouted once he arrived at the lake. Usually, Graham would have emerged from the cabin, squealing cheerfully, but……

“……No way …….There’s no way this is happening! You can’t be serious!!”  

Bell screamed as she trembled in anger. A portion of the fence they built was broken, and the cabin was partly destroyed. Worse yet, the corpses of Graham’s parents were dug up, with about half of their hides skinned off their bodies. In this cruel picture, Graham was nowhere to be found.

……Their worst fears had come to fruition.

“W-what should we do, Yuno!? What happened to Graham!? What do we do!?”

Bell begged Yuno for an answer with tears in her eyes. However, like her, the sight left Yuno in a state of confusion. This was almost certainly the work of the remaining bandits, so the most practical option would be to team up with the Magic Knights that were hunting them. However, it would be difficult to find the others in a forest as wide as this, and there probably weren’t many knights pursuing them in the first place. Finding them would take too much time. There simply wasn’t enough people or time. He couldn’t contact Julius, either. He wasn’t sure what to do……

“………”

After thinking things through, Yuno closed his eyes and took a deep breath. After calming himself down, he reminded himself of why he was here. After a few more seconds, he opened his eyes and said as he calmly observed his surroundings,

“I don’t see any blood, so I think it’s safe to say that Graham hasn’t been killed. Not here, at least. They must have kidnapped him, probably with the goal of eating him later. While it’s true that they might have killed him en route or seriously wounded him to render him immobile, we can’t let negative thoughts like that get to us.”

If you find yourself unable to move because of all your negative thoughts, it’s sometimes necessary to just try doing what you want before thinking about what you should do…….

This was, without a doubt, one of those times……

“First of all, let’s join up with the knights in pursuit of the remaining bandits and find out where they are in their search. After that, we’ll borrow one of their communication devices and contact the Wizard King.”

They were going to do all they can, believing in the possibility that Graham was still alive.

“Let’s go, Bell……. Full power.”

“Y….. yeah…… sniff!”

Upon Yuno’s words, Bell wiped the tears from her face as she looked him in the eyes. Yuno nodded in response with a small smile on his face. He was about to fly off using his wind magic, but……

“Phew, I finally caught up to you…… Why did you do that of a sudden!?”

For the second time that day, he heard a voice call out to him from behind. When he turned around, he saw Marx approaching him with a broom in his hand and sweat on his forehead.

“Marx-san…… You followed me?”

“Well, if you see somebody’s expression change as drastically as yours and then dash off, of course you have to follow…… wait, what is all this!? What happened!?”

He looked around the lakeshore in a panic. Julius had said that Marx was the last person he’d want to find out what he’s been doing, but this situation was different. Even if this was only by chance, Yuno was glad he was here. With Marx here, he’ll be able to contact Julius right away.

“I’ll explain later. For now, I need you to contact the Wizard King for……”

……He realized it mid-sentence. At present, there wasn’t enough people nor enough time. Even if, for argument’s sake, Julius took advantage of his position of authority to send a large number of knights after the bandits, it would take some time to get that many knights together. There was a faster way to get a lot of knights here, and it would leave him with many more knights, too.

“Huh!? That mischievous magic maniac is…… I mean, the Wizard King is involved in this, too!?”

He was a little intrigued when he heard Marx say something rather disrespectful toward Julius, but, anyway, he quickly conveyed his strategy to Marx, who put it into practice.

 ----- Several minutes later, in a forest on the southwest side of Tonan -----

About ten rough-looking men flew through the forest on their brooms.  

“Hurry it up, you idiots! They’re gonna catch up to us at this rate!”

A bald man named Garo lead the group, spitting harsh words toward his minions behind him, which slowed him down even further. They were the remaining bandits. They slipped past the Magic Knights, and they were currently on their way to their second base, which was in the Forsaken Realm. Moreover, he had a hemp bag tied to the end of his broom. Wriggling violently inside that bag was……

“SQUEA- SQUEAL! SQUEAL!!”

A baby boar they caught by the lakeshore.

“Shut up, ya damned pig! We’re gonna eat ya the second we get to the base, so sit quiet until then!”

As if to let off some steam, Garo yelled his threats at Graham. Then, one of his followers asked him,

“Come to think of it, boss. Why’d ya take that little flame boar? Even if we sold its hide, we wouldn’t get a lotta money. If we just took its collar, then…… Eek!”

His follower shrunk back in fear.

“……Because…... the base…... was DESTROYED!”

Garo said with a roar as he turned his bloodshot eyes toward his follower.

“All our money and food were taken from us! You realize that, right!? Even if it doesn’t give us a lot of money, I’m gonna steal what I can steal! We’re in this mess in the first place because you’re all slackers!”

“I-I’m sorry! I’m so sor-GAH!”

As the others watched from behind as their boss seized their teammate by the collar and shook him, they looked at each other anxiously.

“……H-hey. He’s been…… kind of…… off lately, hasn’t he?”

“Y-yeah…… it’s like he’s gotten more brutal, or maybe more greedy……”

“Hey! You all sayin’ something!?”

Garo looked back and threatened them as he tried to find the people who spoke so insolently……. And then, by chance, he realized it. There was one too many shadows projected on the ground. When he noticed, he looked up toward the sky. At that moment,

“Slash Magic: Death Scythe!”

Large blades of magic swung down from the sky.

“UWOAAAAAAAAAAAH!!”

The blades of green obstructed the bandits from going forward as they flew before Garo’s eyes with a thunderous roar. The trees around them rumbled loudly as the ground beneath them was cut so deeply that one couldn’t see the bottom. What would’ve become of those bandits if such a thing hit them head-on…..?

“……Kah Kah. Jeez, I told you to live and grow up to be strong, didn’t I?”

Above their heads, the bandits heard a voice filled with a malice and intent to kill that made them shiver. Standing above them on his broom was a tall, thin man with ridiculously large blades extending from his forearms.

“You certainly got yourself kidnapped by a group that doesn’t look all that fun to cut up, eh, brat?”

His mouth upturned into a grotesque smile as he licked his lips and stretched his arms before him.

“Well, whatever. I’ll cut down 80 percent of them, so watch and learn.”

“D…….Disperse! Everyone disperse!!”

To escape the onslaught of attacks that were fired at them, the bandit group broke away from each other like baby spiders escaping their nest. Garo veered to the left with two of his underlings in tow.

“B-boss! That guy, he’s…… the Captain of the Green Mantis! Why is a big wig like him coming after stragglers like us!?”

“Hell if I know!! Just shut up and focus on getting outta……. Huh?”

Before he could finish talking, he noticed another ominous sight. Before his eyes was a woman of peerless beauty clad in armor, standing around as if she was waiting for them. Under normal circumstances, this fact would have made him ecstatic. However, Garo’s face grew grim. Just like with Jack, Garo didn’t know her first-hand, but he has heard terrible rumors. That face, and the way she held herself…… there was little doubt in his mind that this woman was the Captain of the Blue Roses, Charlotte.

“Briar Magic: Corpse-Hunting Briar Tree”

As if to substantiate Garo’s suspicions, thorny briars grew from the ground with unnatural speed to the left and right of him, piling into cone-like structures until they projected into the air like a tower.

“UGAAAAAAAAAH!”

Unable to avoid them, Garo’s two underlings fell victim to her thorns. However, Garo slipped through and escaped. No, he had the feeling that the thorns never aimed for him from the beginning……

“…… Relax. I will not strike you. Graham…… no, a wild boar is in that bag, correct?”

He felt a strange feeling from this beautiful woman who spoke with such a clear, concise voice. Even after only seeing her gorgeous face from a distance, he could tell – this woman was furious.

“Hand that boar over right now. If you do, I’ll have mercy on you and tear your corpse to pieces!!”

“EEEEEEEK!”

His soul practically leapt from his body as he shrieked, trying to get away from her. However, in the direction of his escape stood…...

“Wind Magic: Crescent Kamaitachi”

“Woah!”

Four crescent-shaped blades flew through the air with a howl as they cleanly sliced through the trees around Garo. Past the sounds of one tree after another falling to the ground, he heard voices, both male and female, talking above his head.

“With this, nothing is blocking our view…… we can see this scoundrel’s face more clearly.”

“Not that I wanted to! He’s ugly, dirty, and he has a small-fry kind of vibe! That’s three strikes!”

The two voices he heard came from a handsome black-haired boy and a girl about the size of a doll, who was flying around him.

‘What kind of magic tool is that?’ Garo thought.

Moreover, this became evident once his surroundings were cleared, but…...

“……Hey…… What the hell? …….Why the hell are there so many of you!?”

There was a dozen…… no, there were several dozens of Magic Knights, and they had Garo’s group completely surrounded as they stood by on their broomsticks.

“W-we’re just the remnants of a ruined group of bandits…… why, why are you…..!?”

“……Good question. I wonder about that.”

As Garo groaned, the boy swooped down in front of him with a blank expression and said quietly,

“Maybe you took someone’s kid, or their little brother, or their henchman…… perhaps?”

 Truthfully, even Yuno didn’t expect this many people to come. After all, Yuno only said one thing. He had Marx use his magic to report the situation to Julius, and after that, he had Marx contact the headquarters of the Green Mantis and the Blue Roses. Upon getting in contact with them, the only thing he told them was,

“The remaining bandits have kidnapped a baby boar I was keeping at the lake shore and are now on the run.”

That’s all he said before joining up with the rest of the knights in pursuit of the bandits. While they were searching, an astonishing number of Green Mantis knights and Blue Roses knights had gathered. When he asked why they were all here, they said their Captains ordered them to join the hunt. Even the Captains themselves joined the hunt, and they both looked like they were searching for blood.

Thus, their little hunting team became a large and fierce group, and with no hesitation, they utilized their mobility and self-discipline to find and hunt down the remaining bandits in a flash.

“Kah Kah. You damned brat. You used us. You have guts, I’ll give you that.”

As Yuno approached Garo, Jack poked at Yuno’s shoulder with the tip of his blade.

“I didn’t use you guys, I just couldn’t think of another- Ow. That hurts. It’s bleeding.”

“……W-well, it doesn’t matter to me what happens to some wild boar. There have been reports that the remaining bandits carried the Original Sin, so I came here because I thought we should arrest them as soon as possible.”

Charlotte said with a slightly red face as she approached the two of them.

“I just fed that wild boar on a whim……. Huh?”

Charlotte shuddered as if she just realized something very serious. She then grasped the hilt of her sword tightly, summoning briars from her sword that wrapped around Yuno’s neck.

“…….You bastard, don’t tell me…… y-you saw me…… bringing food to that boar?”

“What are you talking about? I saw you two leaving from the lake shore, so I just thought you might’ve met Graha-Ow. That hurts. Um, this really doesn’t suit my character, so……”

“Shit……. Shit! Just a little further…… and yet I get stopped by this group of idiots…… Shit!!”

As he watched those three talk back and forth, Garo cursed in a low voice.

“Ah, I forgot. You’re here, too.”

Bell said, before continuing in her usual loud voice,

“You’re the idiot here! Now, hurry up and return Graham to us!”

“……Wait, Bell. He’s acting stange.”

Yuno stopped Bell, who looked like she could bite Garo at any moment, and studied Garo. His breathing was rough, his eyes were bloodshot, and he was clenching his teeth so hard that a thin trail of blood oozed from his mouth.

‘This is just like that time with Zable……!’

“Shit……. Shit! SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIIIIT!!”

Garo screamed as if he had gone insane. Then, a pure white grimoire emerged from his chest, and from his back spread countless invisible tentacles, which bent and wriggled about. The Original Sin had started going berserk.

“SQUE-SQUEAL! SQUEAL!!”

At that moment, Graham’s voice could be heard from the bag at Garo’s feet. Just being exposed to this much magic must be painful for him. It must be scary.

“Graham!”

Without a moment’s delay, Yuno and Bell activated their mana skin and ran toward Graham.

“H-hey! Don’t be reckless!”

Charlotte called out in an attempt to stop him, but Jack yelled over her.

“No, he has the right idea…… Hey, you all! Stop that bandit’s attacks and support that kid with all you’ve got! Don’t let that bandit lay a single finger on that kid, or the bag at his feet!!”

Under Jack’s command, a massive simultaneous attack from all nearby knights began.

“Shit……Shit, Shit, SHIT!”

Garo’s tentacles repelled every attack that was fired at him as he wreaked havoc on his surroundings. However, each tentacle that tried to reach Yuno and Bell was slashed apart, torn apart by briars, or stopped by some other magic spell. One after another, they vanished before reaching Yuno. Yuno himself used his wind magic to repel any tentacle that made its way toward Graham, but there were too many.

“Graham!!”

Just as he was only a few steps away from Graham, a single tentacle weaved its way through his attacks and swung down toward Graham. At that moment……

“Time Restraining Magic: Chrono Stasis!”

“…… Huh?”

……. Time stopped.

Garo stopped. The tentacles stopped. Yuno and Bell stopped. All the magic knights around them stopped. They were all wrapped in an absurdly large sphere of magic, where all movement ceased. Before Yuno could begin to process what happened, the sphere of magic slowly converged until it surrounded only Garo. The tentacles had stopped moving, but, before long, they lost their power and vanished into the air.  Yuno was released from Julius’s time prison, causing him to fall on his backside, where he continued to stay as he watched.

“……I see. The tentacles disappear if its owner is rendered powerless…… For caution’s sake, I stopped time over a large area, but it looks like that wasn’t necessary.”

The person who created this situation, Julius, said this smoothly as he descended slowly in front of Yuno.

“Sorry I’m late, Yuno-kun, Bell-kun. You did a great job…...”

He said in an incredibly casual tone of voice. With his tranquil smile, Yuno was…… no, surely everyone was overwhelmed by his presence.

As soon as he got here, he cast such powerful magic over such a wide area and, with surgeon-like precision, imprisoned only Garo. Most of all, he did all this in an instant, with no prep work required. Everyone here knew that he was absurdly powerful. However, they didn’t realize what that meant until they saw his power in action before their eyes. He was the Clover Kingdom’s most powerful Magic Knight – The Wizard King. As Yuno thought, the wall he and Asta had to surmount was absurdly high.

……. However,

“Are you hurt?”

Julius turned toward Yuno and held out his hand. By reflex, Yuno almost took his hand, but,

“……….”

He reconsidered, lowering his hand and suppressing the light trembling in his legs as he forced his weight upon them,

“……I’m fine. Thank you for your help.”

And stoop up firmly with his own power on his own two feet.

‘Someday, I’ll climb over that wall.’

He held such thoughts in his heart as he stood with his own strength.

“Ha ha. I guess…… you didn’t need my help, huh…….?”

‘I could have sworn I’ve had a conversation just like this with someone else before…...’

Realizing that this wasn’t the time nor place to think about that, he dropped the idea and started thinking to himself warmly,

‘The next generation after me……. Yami, William, and the others are already actively performing great service as Captains. The generation after them have a strong will, and they are growing steadily but surely.’

Through them – through the power of those who have inherited his will – the Order of Magic Knights, and this country, is gradually being reborn into the form Julius has always wished for. Rather than a few decades, after ten years…… no, less than that. In a few years, the future that Julius has wished for could very well come true.

Faced with such youthful power, these thoughts were renewed within Julius.

“……Well, I don’t plan on giving this seat to anyone just yet~”

“……Huh, what was that?”

“Nothing at all…... This isn’t the time for us to get lost in sentimentality. We have to help Graham.”

Julius said as if to end the subject, grabbing the hemp bag and opening it swiftly. Upon doing so, Graham leaped out in an instant, jumping into Julius’s chest with a happy squeal.

“Graham, are you okay!? Are you hurt!?”

“It looks like…… you’re okay. Thank goodness……”

Once Bell and Yuno came closer, Graham squealed cheerfully once more. It was good that Graham wasn’t hurt physically, but they were also happy that the ordeal didn’t appear to wound him emotionally, too.

……Instead, considering all the aftermath they’ll have to deal with, the reports that will need to be written, and the incoming lecture from Marx, perhaps they’re the ones who are going to come out of this ordeal traumatized……. Well, those are minor problems.

“Graham…… I’m sorry. You must have been so scared. You did a great job getting through this.”

Julius pet Graham’s head with a few tears in his eyes.

“You’re safe now, so let’s go home with Papa and-

“Squeal, squeal!”

CRUNCH

With full force, Graham chomped down on Julius’s fingers.

 “……Jeez, I’ve just about had it with you! So you were raising an unusual pet, huh……? That the kind of thing an extravagant bachelor with too much time and money on his hands would do! Stop playing around and get back to work!”

“……Yes…… Yes……. Yes……. I’m sorry…….”

The others dealt with the aftermath smoothly while Marx continued to lecture Julius. That said, there wasn’t much for Yuno to do. Transporting the bandits they captured, listening to magic tool researchers, he finished all that a while ago, so right now he was chatting with Jack and Charlotte right next to Julius as he was getting lectured.

Specifically…….

“……We plan to release Graham into the wild soon.”

He felt that he should tell them what they were planning to do. As he looked at Yuno holding Graham when he said this, Jack scratched his head and replied,

“I don’t really care, but…… Well, that makes sense. From the start, he’s a wild animal, so he shouldn’t be closed up with humans. Plus, he could get rolled up in some bad news like what just happened today. Once he’s healed up, you should let him go.”

“B-but…….. is there a place where a young boar can live safely without their parents protecting them?”

Charlotte looked a little upset as she said this. Incidentally, a few moments ago, she took Graham away while Yuno wasn’t looking and told him,

“I’m sorry for all the mean things I said earlier. I didn’t mean it when I said I didn’t care about you. I love you!”

Bell happened to see this and reported it to Yuno, but……. Back to the main subject. At that moment, Marx finally took a breath in the middle of his lecture, allowing Julius a chance to join the conversation.

“……We both searched extensively, but we couldn’t find a good place for him. Do either of you know of anywhere good?”

Jack and Charlotte glanced at each other before replying simultaneously,

“Well, if that’s what you’re going to ask, there’s someone more suited to answering your question than we are.”

“Moreover, it’s highly likely that she’ll be joining us any moment now……”

“……Huh?”

Just as Julius tilted his head in confusion, he heard a preposterously loud voice resound through the air.

“Wizard King! I thank you for catching the bandits that escaped!”

The one who descended from the sky with such a loud voice was none other than Mereoleona Vermillion. She was a gallant woman who was serving as a substitute Captain of the Crimson Lions for Fuegoleon. However, before she assumed the role of Captain, she……

“……I see! If I recall, she spends over 300 days a year living her life in the forests and fields of the wild. She probably knows a lot about what we’re looking for.”

“Yes. Then, I wonder if you should give Graham to her.”

As Julius and Charlotte spoke to each other, Mereoleona walked toward them as she laughed heartily,

“And you even managed to capture a copy of the Original Sin without destroying it! As I would expect from our Wizard King! With this, we’ll be able to analyze it easily, and…… hm?”

As she was speaking, her eyes sharpened with a piercing gaze when she spotted Graham. She then licked her lips and said,

“Ho hoh, you captured quite the tasty-looking boar. Once we get back, let’s cook him right away!”

…...For now, at least, they all decided that there was no way they were leaving Graham with her.

 After that, Graham was deathly afraid of Mereoleona, so Yuno and Bell picked Graham up and carried him a little further away to put distance between them while Julius explained their circumstances to her.

“I see! If that’s how it is, then there’s plenty of great places I can show you!”  

Mereoleona struck her chest with her fist as she said this.

On a side note, earlier, Jack and Charlotte guided Marx and the other knights home. Before Jack left, he stared at Graham with a profound gaze. At that moment, Bell dubbed over his thoughts with a whisper,

“Well then, boy. Make sure you don’t lose to those humans.”

Back to the present, Mereoleona continued talking as loudly as ever.

“In the natural realm, there are places that are considered “child-rearing spots”! They are considered as such because they have plenty of food and little territorial conflict. I know of several such places!”

At that moment she suddenly went up to Julius’s face, and lowered her voice as she asked,

“By the way, Wizard King. What kind of trick were you trying to pull this time?”

Julius smiled the same as ever as he replied,

“……..Now, what ever could you be talking about?”

“Don’t play dumb with me…… with the amount of personal connections you have, you could have easily asked plenty of other people to take care of that boar. And yet, you chose that boy.”

Mereoleona glanced at Yuno before giving Julius a smile filled with hidden meaning,

“You created a situation where you would raise that boar with that kid, the genius chosen by one of the great spirits, so that you could see with your own eyes how he trains and what kind of growth he has achieved……. Am I wrong?”

“……You’re half-right, but you’re also half-wrong. It really was a coincidence that I was found by Yuno-kun.”

Julius had a small smile on his face as he gave up on the idea of keeping it a secret. She, too, is probably just asking because of her own personal interest, and he didn’t want to be that secretive, so he figured it was fine to tell her.

“However, to design counter-measures against the Eye of the Midnight Sun……. I wanted to thoroughly understand how he fights with Sylph, Sylph’s own personality, and how friendly she is toward other humans. Since we would be raising Graham together, I just figured I’d use the opportunity to observe him.”

In truth, he would be able to see how Yuno fights at the Royal Knights Selection Exam, and he can create as many opportunities as he likes to talk with Bell. However, that would just be for “work”. Frankly speaking, the quickest way to learn about someone is to do a task together that requires one to rely on the other. It was a little unscrupulous of him to do this, but he took advantage of that accident so that they could work together. Moreover, keeping the fact he was raising a flame boar a secret was never all that important to him in the first place.  His goal was to get closer to Yuno by sharing a secret together. As a result, he was able to watch Yuno train on several different occasions, and he has a better understanding of Bell’s magic and temperament.

Most of all, he thinks that they are on friendlier terms now. Even though this all happened by chance, he gained so much from it.

“So, no tricks from me. I just nudged things in the right direction, just a little bit. I truly did want somebody to help me take care of Graham.

“……I see. Then, what about Jack and Charlotte?”

Mereoleona happily continued hounding Julius for more. It’s not that she wanted to find his weakness or anything, she just wanted to satisfy her intellectual curiosity. After all, she was a woman who put all her energy into everything she did, no matter what it was.

“You said that they just happened to find out, but…… someone of your caliber wouldn’t make a blunder as foolish as letting your magical power get sensed by someone else. Well, even though Jack having an evil soul and taking away your magic tool was a miscalculation on your part, you got them involved on purpose so that you would have personnel who could take action in the event of an emergency like today’s right?”

“……..I wonder about that?”

“Fu fu……….WAH HAHA HAH! You truly are one crafty fellow!”

She slapped Julius’s back and laughed heartily once more…… At that moment.

“Squeal!! Squeal!”

Graham rushed forward with all his strength and tackled Mereoleona’s feet. Over and over. Though he was terrified by her just a short while ago, he continued to crash his tiny body against her.

“W-what’s wrong, Graham? You’re so riled up……”

Julius picked Graham up, but Graham continued trying to threaten Mereoleona.

“I know she’s often called a boorish woman, and I often wonder why I have to be so on guard around one of my own subordinates, but she’s not an enemy.”

“I’m not sure what you’re trying to say about me, but…… most likely, when he saw me hitting your back, he thought I was bullying you.”

“What……?”

He said as he looked at Graham, who pressed his face into his chest.

“Squea-squeal……”

“………..”

It was the sound flame boars make when they want their parent’s attention. The fact he was crying out to Julius in this way meant……

“Ha, ha ha…… that can’t be right. Graham, even now, you keep biting me so hard, and yet……”

He turned his face away from Mereoleona, as well as from Yuno and Bell, who were rushing toward them, as he said this. Mereoleona looked a little surprised before saying,

“Oh? If he was biting you, then that means he really loved you…… Biting is one of the attachment behaviors of young flame boars. The fact he was biting you is proof that he thought of you as his parent.”

Everyone was shocked silent when they heard this. Bell represented everyone when she said,

“Huh? Then…… Graham though of the Wizard King as his father from the start?”

“Graham……”

As if in response to Julius calling out his name, Graham made the same cries as before, as if he wanted his parent to dote on him more.

He recalled all the days he has spent with Graham. He recalled watching Graham enjoy his baths, Graham’s sweet face as he slept, Graham devouring his food with delight, Graham energetically rushing up to his feet. Fond memories came rushing forth, one after another…….

‘I want to be with this child forever,’ Julius thought.

……But, even so……

“……We can’t. If a wild animal stays with humans for too long, they’ll remember their time with humans far too well, and they won’t be able to return to the wild……We shouldn’t stay together any longer than we already have.”

Hearing those words, Yuno couldn’t help but clench his fists, and Bell looked down with tears in her eyes. They only started raising Graham halfway through, yet it hurt this much to say goodbye to him. Surely, the pain Julius is feeling right now must be even worse……

“……But, you know, Graham.”

Even so, Julius only wiped his eyes a single time before smiling at Graham the way he always did.

“I’ll never forget the time I spent with you. And, I truly did think of you like my own child…… Even if we are apart, that will never change.”

He hugged Graham tightly but gently, and told him quietly,

“I love you, Graham. Thank you……. For thinking of me as your father.”

“Squea-squeal…...”

“Now then, shall we go!?”

As if to destroy the moving atmosphere between them, Mereoleona declared this as she smashed her fists together. Seeing her behave so warlike, Yuno had a bad feeling about what she was going to say when he asked,

“Go……? Go where? It’s not like we’re planning to release Graham into the wild this very second.”

“You fool! There are several different child-rearing spots! We’re all going to preview each spot together to find out which environment suits him the best!”

She said as she looked at him with cold eyes. Then, her mouth upturned into a ferocious grin,

“All these child-rearing spots lie past strong magic zones and dungeons. Doesn’t that sound fun!? Wah hah hah! Isn’t this splendid!? You can utilize the results of your training while we visit each power spot!”

“Sorry. I just remembered some urgent business I need to attend to, so I need to go home.”

Yuno and Bell ran away with subsonic speed, but it was futile. Mereoleona instantly created fire magic in the shape of two lion’s paws from her head and caught them.

“S-someone save us! We’re being kidnapped! A spirit and human are getting kidnapped by a wild animal!”

“Please say something, your highness! There’s no way this is legal!”

Bell cried out in tears while Yuno, in an act that was very out of character for him, begged Julius to do something. He was the only one in this situation with the power to stop her, but…….

“………Umm, sorry, you two…….”

Julius said with an incredibly awkward expression on his face as he held Graham lovingly.

“I-I think that being suddenly thrust into a strange area would make him anxious, so…… could you come with us?”

“……..Huuuuuuuuuh?”

The Wizard King – Julius Novachrono.

He's the hero of Clover Kingdom, a source of inspiration for all Magic Knights and all the Kingdom’s citizens……

“Hey Graham~ You want everyone to be with you, too, right?”

“Squea-Squeal~”  

…….He’s a huge softie, overindulgent, and he can be a bit of a bother. He had an ordinary side to him that you could find in any ordinary middle-aged man, but……

That's just the sort of person Julius is.

--- The Man Known as Julius: The End ---

W-what am I supposed to say at the end of this chapter? I’m just too sad that they have to say goodbye to Graham ;A;

I’m also sad that this was the last untranslated Book of Yuno chapter. I’m glad to have finished it, because it’s such a good book, but I…… I want more.

[penpatronuswhump]

WHUMPTOBER 2020

No. 17

Fandom: Avengers

Whumpee: Peter Parker

Caregiver: Tony Stark

Title: Blackmail, Bullets, Blood

By: PenPatronus // PenPatronusAooO 

Steve was so concerned about Tony that he followed him one night. Tony walked to a small Stark Industries warehouse eight blocks from the Tower at two in the morning. Peeking through a dusty window, Steve watched as Tony loaded wooden crate after wooden crate into a white Stark Industries van. When Tony went to leave, when the garage door opened, there was Cap standing there illuminated by the headlights with his hands at his hips, looking like a mother who just caught her son’s hand in the cookie jar.

 Tony stuck his head out of the driver’s side window and shouted, “Out of my way, Rogers!”

 “I can’t do that, Stark,” Steve called back. “Not until you tell me why you’re sneaking out missiles in the middle of the night.”

 “It’s none of your damn business where I’m going with my own inventory, Rogers,” Tony spat back. Tony jumped out of the van and pushed Steve in the chest. “Now get out of here!”

 Steve caught Tony’s wrists when Stark went in to push him again. “Where are you taking those missiles? I thought Stark Industries was done with arms dealing. Who are you selling these to?”

 “Selling them?” Tony laughed. He put his hands on his knees and laughed harder. “Selling them…”

 In the bright light, Cap noticed that Tony’s skin was white and shiny with sweat. He appeared to have lost a few pounds and the crescents beneath his eyes were darker than usual. “Tony, what’s wrong with you?”

 Tony wiped his eyes with his flannel shirt sleeve. “Nothing.”

 “You’re upset and you’re hiding something from me.”

 “I’m hiding a lot of things from you. You’ll have to be more specific.”

“Tony…”

 “Cap, I really need to get going.” Stark checked his watch. “I can’t be late.”

 “Fine. I’ll go with you. I’m driving.” Steve went to pass Tony, but Stark grabbed him by the shoulders.

 “Listen to me. Just… Just listen, Steve. I can’t get you involved in this. Nobody can get involved in this. It’s just between me and…”  Tony sighed.

 “Tony, I’m your friend.” Steve put his hands on Tony’s shoulders. “I just want to help.”

 “You can’t help me,” Tony whispered. “This is the only way. This… This…” Tony’s face crumpled. Tears welled up in the corners of his eyes. “He took the kid.”

“Parker? Who?”

 “Klaue. Ulysses Klaue, the arms dealer. He has Peter. And if I don’t keep giving him missiles, he’ll kill him.” Arms fell away, and Stark took his phone out of his pocket. He opened an app Cap didn’t recognize, and showed a live feed of a prison cell. In it, a very skinny, very disheveled, very dirty Peter Parker sat in the corner with his arms around his legs, staring at the wall. “Klaue gives him one bite of bread and one sip of water for every missile I give him. And if I don’t get there soon, Peter won’t have anything to eat in the morning.”

 “He’s practically starving him,” Cap said. His face turned red. “Tony, we’re getting him out of there. Right now.”

 Stark shook his head. “Klaue said that if he sniffs even the slightest bit of trouble, he’ll kill the kid without a second thought. If one security guard sees us, if one alarm goes off – Pete’s dead.”

 Steve nodded. He gave it some thought – eyebrows frowning. “We’re going to need some help, then, aren’t we?”

 “Steve, no, I…” Tony put his face in his hands, then suddenly whirled around and punched the truck with his bare fist. “I can’t risk the kid! This is the only way to keep him alive.”

 “Tony, Klaue will eventually kill him, no matter what. We gotta get him out now.”

 Tony took three deep, settling breaths. “You’re right,” he decided. “You’re always right, Cap. So… What do we do?”

 “What we’re gonna do,” said Steve, “is rescue Parker and take down Klaue at the same time. And, fortunately, we have some very Ninja-like assassins who can get the kid out before Klaue even knows we’re there.”  

 ----------

 Tony stood on the dock outside Klaue’s seaside warehouse and watched the arms dealer’s men unload the missiles from the van. The only light was the moon over the water and one flickering snot-colored lightbulb above the entrance. Tony pulled his baseball cap down and folded his arms against his chest. Autumn was just about to exit the stage, and the East Coast had been promised an extra cold winter.

 Klaue emerged from his office wearing a pit-stained white button down shirt over dirty jeans. He had a toothpick in his mouth and an assault rifle over his shoulder. “Mr. Stark,” he greeted, “my most loyal supplier. I’m told you’re five missiles short today.”

 Tony held up his palms. “My own supplier let me down, Klaue. But I brought you something to make up for it. Look in the back seat.” Klaue nodded at his henchmen. One opened the van and an unconscious, tied-up, beat-up Steve Rogers came tumbling out, rolling across the wooden dock.

 Klaue clapped his hands together. “Quite a gift!” he exclaimed. “I know some underground scientists who will pay quite a lot for a specimen like this.” He motioned for his henchmen. Tony expected Klaue to order them to take Steve inside but, instead, they lifted him to his feet. Klaue approached Steve, said, “I know you’re awake, Captain,” and smacked Steve across the face. Cap coughed and spit out a tooth.

 “Let me guess what your plan was,” Klaue said, attention back on Tony. “I put Rogers in the same cell with Parker, together with their combined strength they break through the bars, and then they sneak out – escaping from under my nose, yes?”

 Tony pursed his lips together so hard that they turned white. “Listen, Klaue, I just want the kid. I’ll give you whatever you ask, just give me the kid back.”

 “We all want things, Stark. I want to own a Caribbean island. And, I’m only five mil short of it. And now, here you are, interfering with my dream, trying to take it away.” Klaue shook his head. “Tisk, tisk,” he said, waggling his forefinger. “I told you I’d kill the kid if you interfered. But, I think I’ll do you one better. I think, right in front of your eyes, I’ll kill all four of them.”

 “Four?”

 A garage door opened and a half dozen henchmen wearing thick jackets and caps over their faces exited with a very bloodied, very beat up Peter, Clint, and Natasha. Klaue gave the order to stand them next to Cap, then he ordered all four of them to their knees. His goons pushed them down and aimed guns at their backs.

 “I’m sorry, Mr. Stark,” Peter whimpered.

 Tony shook his head. “I let you down, kid. I’m so, so sorry.”

 Klaue was soaking up the moment like sunshine. “This is lovely. Half the world wants you all dead and here I am, little old me, holding each of your lives in my hands. I really should sell tickets to this.”

 “Enough, Klaue,” Tony barked. “I want my team free. I’ll give you anything, anything you want.”

 “Anything, huh?” Klaue tapped his chin. “What if what I want is for you to see your friends die?” He nodded at his henchman. “Kill Barton.”

 “NO!” Tony screamed. He was too late. The henchman shot Clint in the back. Barton collapsed forward onto the dock. He didn’t move.

 “Clint!” Nat sobbed.

 Klaue suddenly cocked and aimed his weapon. “Who’s next?” he asked, aiming the gun first at Peter, and then at Natasha, and then at Steve. “Which one of your friends is next?”

 Tony saw movement in his peripheral vision, and it took all his concentration not to look at the roof of the warehouse. “Klaue?” Tony said, his posture straight now, his classic smirk back on his face, “would you like to guess what happens when a warehouse full of volatile weapons gets hit by a bolt of lightning?” Tony looked up at the roof.

 Klaue followed his gaze. Thor waved down at the crowd, then raised his hammer.

 “Get him!” Klaus screamed, and he and all his henchmen turned to fire. At that precise moment Bruce Banner, who’d disguised himself as the very goon who shot Barton in his bulletproof vest, pivoted and hit Klaue in the shoulder with a bullet. Klaue tumbled backwards off the dock and into the water. His rifle spat a half-dozen times as he fell.

 Natasha flipped to her feet. Barton rolled over and somersaulted backwards. Steve broke out of his bonds instantly. While those three kept the henchmen from shooting Thor, Peter sprinted into Tony’s arms. Stark caught him and lifted him off his feet, so happy was he. “Into the van, kid,” Tony ordered. “Everyone in the van, now!” he shouted. He could feel the dock rumbling as more of Klaue’s goons were heading their way. Barton, Banner, and Rogers dove into the back of the white van. Natasha got in the driver’s seat while Tony pushed Peter into the back seat. Tony yanked the door shut and shouted, “Heads down!”

 Outside, Thor rose into the air, summoned lightning, and slammed it down into the weapons compound. The place exploded in a massive mushroom cloud. But seconds before it did, Thor picked up the van and flew it out of danger. He set it on the street six blocks away and opened the door, revealing his disheveled but whole friends. “Sorry I was late,” the god said. “I was with Jane and I didn’t get your message and... Why didn’t you wait for me?”

 “Because we had to get there by a deadline!” Tony shouted at him. He sat against the far door with his arms around Peter, who was leaning back against him. “You cut it pretty damn close you big Norse piece of—” Tony felt something warm on his shirt. He looked down and saw dark liquid against his shoulder. It was blood, blood that wasn’t his. One of Klaue’s shots had hit a target.

 “PETE!”

 Peter had gone limp. He fell back into Tony’s arms, smearing blood from his shot up shoulder down the rest of Tony’s shirt. Stark tossed his hat away and adjusted Peter’s body so that the kid was cradled in his lap. “Nat! Hospital! Now!” Tony shouted.

 A tear slid down Peter’s cheek. “Thanks for coming for me,” he said between hitched breaths. “Thank you, Mr. Stark.”

 “Kid, hang on, we’ll get you some help in a second, in just a second, all right?”

 Peter licked his white lips. “It hurts,” he whispered.

 Tony’s heart clenched like a fist. He looked at his wide-eyed friends who were just as helpless as he was. “Hang on, kid,” was all he could think to say. Adrenaline burned through him and his face flushed. “Just hang on, Pete.”

 ---------

 May exited Peter’s hospital room with a fake smile that instantly disintegrated once she was sure she was out of her nephew’s eyeline. Tony stood up from a hallway bench and she hugged him. “He’s so brave,” she sobbed in his ear. “He’s incredible.”

 Tony nodded. He sniffed, and then held May at arm’s length. “He is. He’s an incredible kid.”

 “He wants to talk to you.”

 “Ok.” Tony took a deep breath. “Ok.”

 The kid was asleep when he walked in, so Tony had time to sit in a chair beside the bed and relive every moment of the “rescue.” He should’ve done better. He should’ve acted faster. He should’ve this, he should’ve that…

 “Mr. Stark?”

 Tony shot to his feet. He leaned over the hospital bed and smiled at Peter without showing his teeth. “Hey, kid. How ya feeling?”

 Tears sprung to Peter’s eyes. “I’m sorry,” he cried. “I’m so sorry. None of this would’ve happened if it weren’t for me. The others – are they all right? God, Mr. Stark, I’m so sorry. I deserve to be—”

 Tony held up his finger and made a sound that resembled a game show buzzer. “Don’t,” he ordered softly. “Don’t do that, kid. That’s a dark road I’ve traveled, and I won’t let you go down it. None of this was your fault, you understand? None of it. And the others are fine. You’re fine. Everything’s fine.”

 Peter frowned at him. “Mr. Stark? Are you fine? You’re—you’re crying.”

 Tony didn’t even realize it. He wiped his eyes dry. “Joyful tears, kid.” Then, without thinking about it, he leaned in and kissed the kid on the forehead. “Glad you’re ok,” he whispered, “so glad, Pete.”

 The End

[ganymedesclock]

Kept meaning to draw more Dead Cells headcanons but w/e so I’m writing them instead.

Prisoner

Does not have clean pretty Hollywood amnesia nearly as much as he remembers everything pre-losing his head technically but in practice, unreliably and wandering too far into memories he can’t ground with more recently observed evidence is just going through a fever dream of what he’s pretty sure maybe probably actually happened at some point.

Related to above he has a breathtaking command of information he has no idea how he learned or from whom.

One time he spent an entire fairly prolonged loop with a particularly bawdy sea shanty stuck in his head and to this day he is not sure if he completely made it up but probably not because he didn’t even know half of those terms were used euphemistically. 

Amenable to most pronouns, but mostly he’d just really like it if someone actually asked.

Overall is just in rough shape. Some of the alterations to his clothing are that he lost a concerning amount of weight prior to his ‘loop reset state’ and used scraps of cloth to tie his shirt and pants on. 

If he could talk and had anybody besides Mushroom Boi to hang out with, would absolutely be the kind of guy where you’re lying in bed half-awake and he says some shit like “do we know factually that swans aren’t just an elaborate hoax” and then you spend the next hour wide awake and angry furiously wracking your brain for the last time you personally saw a swan.

Can pull his fire head close enough to press at his neck stub which basically looks like he turtles inside his scarf

Trying really hard to be cool and unaffected by the dying repeatedly thing and mostly succeeds unless it’s been happening a lot lately.

At any given moment is about three good shoves from an emotional breakdown but the other people in the loop virtually never catch him at it. Basically his psychological state is like looking at a precariously but very strategically balanced bookshelf where the longer you look at it the more upsetting it is that it’s still standing and yet somehow.

Mushroom Boi helps

Mushroom Boi

Has the approximate level of sapience of an abnormally smart dog. Could carry simple conversations if given some kind of proxy to communicate through and the training to use it.

Really unusual compared to the Jerkshrooms whose instinct to kneecap people is hampered by a general fear of anything larger than them that isn’t a Yeeter. Mushroom Boi inexplicably fears nothing. They will headbutt the Hand of the King. They will headbutt the Giant. If given a clear path to their target they would headbutt the gods.

In fact has less fear than Prisoner “haha YOLO” McHeadless which can lead to some interesting results.

Part of the weirdness is them being a lab-grown and human-socialized specimen but also they actually had a surprisingly decent relationship with the researcher responsible for synthesizing them, though the Alchemist took ownership of the project because said researcher went the way of, well, almost everyone else on the island.

They’re coherent enough to wonder what happened to him sometimes.

Keyed decently to Prisoner’s emotional states even when he hides it and has genuinely therapy-mushroomed him off a panic attack at least once.

Y’know that thing in the RE2 remake where Mr. X will kill you faster if you shoot his hat off? Mushroom Boi will do that about their bow. Which is impressive since this is not a superweapon but instead an approximately toddler-sized mushroom.

Sometimes it seems like they might be in the process of figuring out how to use knives and Prisoner is really not sure what emotion he’s supposed to feel but he sure feels it with great intensity.

Time Keeper

She keeps the winding key for the clocktower close to heart by which I mean it’s physically inside her chest. Good news is nobody can sneeze weirdly in the island’s time loop without her knowing about it. Bad news is her way of knowing is unpleasant. The worse news is the deterioration of the loop is partially because an essential and irreplaceable part of the clock has been playing a long losing game against crushing amounts of fatigue and said essential part is her.

Y’know every time she resets the loop or rewinds to avoid a boss fight? Yeah. That sensation sucks a lot and sorta feels like deliberately inducing arrhythmia in yourself.

Doesn’t get sleep she gets results except if she is dead honest god she yearns for eight uninterrupted hours but also that is a luxury she can’t afford. Too disciplined and perfectionist to be a shirker but if she ever gets an actual practical opportunity to be well-rested she might cry a little. 

Not from the island originally; came from a very long ways away, for reasons she has not explained to anyone. At least, as far as anybody knows. the Crypt Keeper isn’t telling.

Three of the alt temporal outfits are places she lived (volcano, jungle, desert) or traveled through coming here. She’s originally from the desert.

Dead-on-her-feet exhausted most of the time. This can mean she comes off as an unstoppable and unnervingly calm terminator who might acknowledge belatedly that she’s just gotten stabbed after she’s tossed you across the room with one of her many, many giant heavy swords, and it can mean sometimes if she’s having a really bad loop she just walks into a closed door, stops, and stays there for a while.

This isn’t a headcanon I just want to point out that she’s canonically more jacked than HotK because Prisoner picks up and wields HotK’s symmetrical lance, but in the optional lore room where you find all of Time Keeper’s swords, Prisoner notes they’re too heavy for him to use.

Prisoner, signing, terrified “Do I weigh anything to you?” Time Keeper, “no it’s like holding a couple of grapes”

She used to have a rigorous workout routine but nowadays who needs that when you’re endlessly surrounded by the living dead, right.

[recentanimenews]

FEATURE: Getting To Know My Hero Academia's Class B

  While much of My Hero Academia focuses on Deku and his friends in the prestigious Class 1-A, just as important are the talented kids of Class 1-B. They aren't given as much screen time as their 1-A counterparts, but they are just as varied and interesting. Recently these two classes clashed in a series of team battles arranged to help the students get some practical combat training, as well as test Hitoshi Shinso's capabilities and readiness for the proper Hero Course.

  Since they've all gotten the spotlight recently, let's go over what their personalities and strengths as heroes are!

  Yosetsu Awase

    Despite what some might describe as his rude way of speaking, Yosetsu — whose hero name is Weld — is actually one of the most heroic and selfless characters we've been introduced to. You might remember him putting his life on the line to save Momo during the villain ambush in the camp training arc. His quirk  (also called Weld) allows him to fuse any two materials he is touching. It's a powerful supporting ability, as it allows him to easily restrain his target, even keeping down the wild and unwieldy Bakugo in round 4 of the recent competition between 1-A and 1-B.

  Sen Kaibara

    Sen is a serious and thoughtful person at first glance. At the beginning of the third round of the joint combat training, he scolds Tetsutetsu for jumping right into action without a plan. When it comes to battle, though, his demeanor changes entirely and he becomes extremely excitable  — he has a huge grin on his face while fighting 1-A's tail-wielder Mashirao. His hero name is Spiral, named after his quirk Gyrate, which enables him to rotate his body parts at extremely high speeds. While theoretically useful with any limb, Sen uses special gloves for his fingers that let them act like small drills, making him very dangerous in close combat.

  Togaru Kamakiri

    1-B's "Jack Mantis" Togaru is an aggressive kid with a sharp personality and a matching quirk. Razor Sharp gives him the ability to spawn dangerous blades all over his body. He uses this to great success at the beginning of round four to overwhelm Jiro and also shows how his durable blades can be used defensively by fully blocking an explosion attack from Bakugo later. Ultimately he is defeated by Bakugo's intense attacks, but not without showing just how much damage he can do with his praying mantis-like appendages.

  Shihai Kuroiro

    Acting as a counterpart of sorts to 1-A's infamous dark hero Fumikage, Shihai is a meticulous planner, living up to his hero moniker Scheming Hero: Vantablack. He can inject himself into shadows and other dark surfaces using his quirk Black, allowing him to move quickly and stealthily as he pleases or create ambushes given the right environment. Since it works on any dark area, he can team up with other heroes to give himself more space to maneuver in, like with his classmate Kinoko's mushrooms. In the second round, he even uses his quirk to briefly control Fumikage's Dark Shadow; while they were enemies there, it would be interesting to see how they could potentially use this synergy to their advantage as a team.

  Itsuka Kendo

    Itsuka is a tough-but-fair big sister figure to her classmates, supporting them while not being afraid to criticize them when they are acting out of line. While all of 1-B showed up earlier in the story, their representative Itsuka appeared in a major capacity during the camp training arc where she faced off against the villain Mustard. Mustard's gas caused most of the students to be incapacitated, but Itsuka was able to show off the power of her quirk Big Fist, using it to shield others from and dispel the gas, as well as use her enhanced strength to take the villain on in close combat. Later, she proved her leadership capabilities in the second round of joint combat training, using her team's unique powers together to lead them to victory against 1-A.

  Yui Kodai

    Unlike her rough and rowdy classmates, Yui — hero moniker Rule — is more reserved, not speaking much nor showing a lot of emotion during the final round of joint combat training. This might have added to the surprise on 1-A's side when she revealed her quirk, Size, capable of making things she has touched bigger or smaller. She mainly uses this ability to throw her enemies off guard, tossing seemingly tiny objects at them and making them much larger just before they make contact.

  Kinoko Komori

    Despite her looks, Kinoko, also known as Shemage, is one of the most excitable members of 1-B, engaging in battle against 1-A with glee. While her quirk Mushroom doesn't have obvious offensive capabilities, she proves to be able to use it to great effect in a team. Kinoko can distribute spores from her body that quickly grow into mushrooms on appropriately moist surfaces. She uses this to slow her enemies down by growing mushrooms directly on their bodies, allowing her teammates extra time to use their more aggressive powers to subdue their opponents. If she wants to, though, her mushrooms can prove deadly — as a last-ditch effort, she caused them to grow inside of Fumikage, choking him. One can only imagine the full extent of her powers!

  Ibara Shiozaki

    Ibara is an almost saintly figure, without a doubt one of the most pacifistic heroes we've met thus far. Her hero name, Vine, is a great descriptor of her quirk (similarly named Vines) which takes the form of vines that grow from her head in place of hair. While the vines can be used offensively — as whips, for example — Ibara almost exclusively uses them defensively, incapacitating her opponents by simply wrapping them up in her seemingly endless hair or forming almost impenetrable shields with it.

  Nirengeki Shoda

    Hero-in-training Mines — real name Nirengeki — is a small and unassuming boy who doesn't stand out much. This perfectly matches his quirk, though. Twin Impact allows him to create a second blow in any place he has already attacked, with the follow-up attack being much more intense than the original. To that end, he keeps a scouter over his eye that helps him keep track of where he has already struck, which also helps him keep track of his enemy's whereabouts. The double strike can also be used to accelerate the trajectory of objects he has hit, which he uses during the final round to attack with thrown objects.

  Pony Tsunotori

    You will immediately notice Pony by her fittingly equine features, like her hooves and tail, as well as her long horns. Her hero name is Rocketti. Unlike most of her classmates, Pony is from the United States and is still adjusting to her new home, causing her to come off as somewhat naive at times, but she is also very kind. While her horse traits may suggest that to be her quirk, her main power is actually Horn Cannon, which allows her to fire the horns on her head as projectiles. They grow back immediately and she is able to control four at a time, making it a versatile power that can be used both offensively to attack and defensively keep enemies away from her.

  Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu

    Tetsutetsu, hero name Real Steel, is a hotblooded boy who has been shown to be devoted wholly to becoming a reliable and inspiring hero. During the villain ambush of the training camp in the forest, he assisted his classmate Itsuka in taking down the gas-based villain Mustard, showing stunning bravery and saving many lives in the process. His quirk, Steel, is simple — it allows him to transform all of the skin on his body into rock-solid metal. This makes him impressive defensively, as it is very difficult to pierce his skin in this state. He is even able to defend against Shoto Todoroki's flames during the joint combat training with 1-A. It is also useful offensively, adding the strength of solid steel to his physical attacks.

  Setsuna Tokage

    Despite her laid-back demeanor, Setsuna is a very capable hero-in-training, being one of the few who managed to get into U.A. High School through recommendations instead of by passing the difficult entrance exam. Fitting her hero name Lizardy, her quirk Lizard Tail Splitter lets her split her body into up to 50 pieces, which can act as projectiles to attack and overwhelm an enemy from afar. It's best used, however, as a more tactical ability, letting her essentially perform surveillance over large areas with just small parts of her body detached. While damaged pieces of her body regenerate if they are lost while split, this is difficult for her to do, so taking too much damage while split is her biggest weakness.

  Manga Fukidashi

    Manga, otherwise known as Comicman, is a hero with a boisterous personality to match his expressive abilities. His quirk, Comic, lets him expel sound effects from his mouth that then act physically as the given sound effect would imply. This has some straightforward uses, like saying "pow!" to create a forceful push. However, it can also be used more creatively, such as when he helps create better conditions for Kinoko's mushrooms to grow by saying "damp" and spreading the sound effect with "woosh" effects. It's not an easy quirk to use, but Manga seems to enjoy how expressive his quirk is and uses it to great effect against 1-A in the second round of joint combat training.

  Juzo Honenuki

    Juzo goes by the hero name Mudman and is a laid-back, fun-loving teenage boy. Like Setsuna, he was accepted to U.A. High School through recommendations, and his capabilities in battle show why. His quirk Softening lets him soften objects and surfaces he comes into contact with, allowing him to maneuver through the softened material as if he's swimming through mud, hence his hero name. He is clearly very comfortable with his quirk as he is quick on his feet to use it, not only blocking ice attacks from Todoroki but even turning the attack against his enemies by ensnaring Ida in the softened ice. While not physically powerful himself, he is able to use his quirk with his teammates, ending the third round of joint combat training by softening an entire building and having Tetsutetsu knock it over with his steel fists.

  Neito Monoma

    Perhaps the most infamous student in 1-B, Neito's boisterous personality and loud mouth precede him. While most of 1-B sees 1-A as rivals in various ways, Neito's perspective on this leans into obsession, making it known at every possible moment the ways he finds 1-A lacking compared to him and his classmates. However, all his bragging is not without merit to back it up. His hero name is Phantom Thief, which comes from his quirk Copy's ability to exactly replicate the quirk of anyone he touches for up to ten minutes. This is where he gets to show off just how smart he is under all that bluster. Quirks are difficult to use and master, but Neito is able to use his quick wit to take advantage of his opportunities with others’ quirks. It’s quite possible he could become one of the most versatile and powerful heroes.

  Reiko Yanagi

    Reiko is a bit of an enigma, not showing much emotion yet being one of the most verbose characters in the series. Her hero name is Emily and she likes to walk around constantly posing like a ghost, which fits her quirk Poltergeist. With Poltergeist, Reiko essentially has telekinesis, moving modestly sized objects with her mind. Potentially an effective projectile technique by itself, she is also a team player, combining her ability to control objects with Yui's Size quirk to enlarge the projectiles beyond Reiko's weight limit just before they make impact.

  Hiryu Rin

    Hiryu is a thoughtful hero-in-training who doesn't jump into battle without considering both his and his enemy's plans. His hero name is Dragon Shroud, and his quirk Scales appropriately gives him the ability to cover his skin in sharp scales. These scales provide some measure of defensive capability but are mostly used offensively. He can invert his scales so that their sharp ends can be used against the enemy for close combat; more often, he uses his scales as projectiles, firing them from his arms. Part of his hero outfit are gauntlets that let him store excess scales which he can later, giving him much more ammo than he would naturally be able to conjure up.

  And that's Class 1-B! It was fun to watch them prove how strong they've gotten since being introduced back in the sports festival. Did any of them surprise you with their skills during the joint combat training battles? Hopefully, we'll see more from them in the future as the fight against Shigaraki and the other top villains in My Hero Academia heats up!

  Who is your favorite member of Class 1-B? Let us know in the comments below!

    David Lynn can be found obsessing over Fate/Grand Order and D4DJ Groovy Mix on Twitter @navycherub.

  Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll. Features!

By: David Lynn

[kaweeella]

Bonding Time, Kids

Chapter 5- We Need More Bandages

Word count- 1767

Description- More robot fighting.

Author note- Alright chapter three has been taken down to chunks. Makes my life easier, honestly. Whoo!

In the stands, Neito watches his classmates destroying robots and buildings. It’s hard to tell who’s doing what, but he just assumes which class does what.

He sees a robot fly a few kilometers through the street. After a minute or so, he sees that the robot starts flying again. Right towards him.

When he realizes it, he gets up to run out of the way. He feels something wrap around his midsection and pulls him.

“You alright, Monoma?” He hears Yosetsu say after he’s set down.

“Yeah, thank you.” He adjusts his jacket, finding it damp. Right. Frog.

Yosetsu watches him. He can’t read his expression, but seeing him pause when he touches his clothes tells him enough.

“Sorry. It’s the first thing that came to mind. Instincts or whatever.”

“It’s alright.” He says, removing his jacket.

Yosetsu sits behind Izuku and Shouto, all of them surrounded by mushrooms.

“Does he ever stop muttering?”

“No, not really.” Shouto answers.

Yosetsu stares at Neito, or he would if he could see him, as if saying “Don’t do it. Don’t fucking do it.”

Neito looks at his classmate, as if he’s about to say something when he pauses. “Why are you sitting like that?”

He’s less sitting and more squatting.

“I dunno. It’s just what's most comfortable.”

Neito shakes his head, not like anyone could tell, and shifts his focus back to the training ground.

“You think they’re holding up alright?”

“Of course I do. There’s nothing I don’t believe they can do.”

“Hey! Saisaku, Sukuidasu! How’re you doing?” The two jump a little as Setsuna sits by them, with Kouji and Kojirou behind her.

“Aren’t you guys supposed to be in the training ground?”

“We already got it figured out, so I’d figured we could come and watch.” She spots the robot. “Oh wow! Who did that?”

“Don’t know, but it nearly took out Monoma.”

“Damn!”

“Wait, you said you guys figured out your quirks?”

“Oh, yeah! Watch!” She pumps her arm and a blade comes out of her elbow.

“I knew my classmates could rise to the occasion!”

Kouji shuffles awkwardly, hoping he’d forget they’re there.

“Oh!” Izuku turns around suddenly, he’s holding a notebook and covered in mushrooms. “Monoma! Do you feel any different? You know, now that you’re invisible?”

“Uhm, no, not really.”

“Can you still see properly? Since your eyes are invisible too, and people see because light is bouncing off of things and onto the eyes, but light goes through yours.”

“I can still see fine.”

“Then Hagakure might have a secondary quirk allowing her to see without light hitting her eyes. She has shown the ability to manipulate light itself, so maybe she changes the light so she can see but her eyes are still invisible…” He goes on, as he is one to do.

“Midoriya,” He places his hand on the boy’s face. “I don’t understand what you’re saying.”

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t even realize I was muttering.” He rubs the back of his neck. “I was mostly just thinking out loud, sorry.”

“It’s not surprising to me that a 1a kid would forget the people around him.”

“Aw, come on, Saisaku! It’s not that bad. In fact, I like that he shares what’s on his mind.” She says that as if it’s a conscious decision he makes.

“O-oh, really?”

“Yeah!” She pauses for a moment. “Hana!”

“Huh?”

“A nickname! See, I started at hanasu (speak), and I thought Hana (flower) would be cool!”

“Oh! Thank you! It’s much nicer than the last nickname I got.”

Back on the grounds, Tetsutetsu and Sen walk around.

“Jeez, what was that?” Tetsutetsu asks.

“It doesn’t seem to be nearby, so I don’t think we should be worried about it.”

“Right,” He sees a robot going past. “Then let’s do this!”

“We should have a pl…” Tetsutetsu runs towards it. “Okay.”

Sen follows behind him, watching the robot’s movements. He knows that they’re out of their depth, he knows that Tetsutetsu knows that they’re out of their depth, but he also knows that they aren’t going to know any more without acting. That doesn’t mean they should go in without a plan.

Tetsutetsu grabs it as though he’s trying to pick it up.

“Tetsutetsu, I don’t think that’s the best idea.”

“Right, right.” He cracks his fingers, and the robot shrinks. “Damn! I think I got Kodai’s quirk.”

“Seems so.”

He picks up the robot and crushes it between his fingers.

“Dude!” Looking over, they see Eijirou waving at them, specifically Tetsutetsu. They also see Ochako, Yuuga, Manga, and Hiryuu running behind him.

“Hey, man!” He notices something. “What’s with the belt?”

“I got Aoyama’s quirk, and he let me use his support belt! Pretty manly, if you ask me!” He punches said boy in the shoulder. It probably would’ve hurt if not for the armor.

“What about you guys?” Sen asks. “Have you figured out what quirks you have?”

“I have Kirishima’s.”

“I believe I have Fukidashi’s quirk.” Hiryuu answers.

“No… I can’t get it to activate.” Manga’s bubble has an angry face.

“Ne me fais pas admettre mes défauts…”

“I don’t understand French, sorry.”

“I haven’t, no.”

A robot steps behind them and grabs Sen.

“Kaibara!” Manga yells, reaching out to his classmate to no avail.

Sen struggles in the steel grip, he feels himself sweating and hears a sort of hissing, which he’s not entirely sure what’s making that noise. After a moment, he falls. He hears what he guesses it’s the destroying of a robot behind him.

He stands up and sees everyone staring at him, when Ochako quickly covers her face and looks away. Looking down, he sees his clothes practically melting off his body.

Yuuga takes off his cape and hands it to him. “Would you like to borrow this?”

He takes it. “Thank you.” He mumbles.

“C’est ce qu’il y a de mieux pour tout le monde.”

Katsuki sees the small crowd and tries to make his way around it.

“Bakugou!” Eijirou calls.

Damn it.

“What do you want, Shitty Hair?”

“Do you know your quirk yet?”

“No, no matter how hard I fucking try, it doesn’t work. Must be some shitty-ass quirk.”

“I have an idea,” Sen ties the cape around himself so he can stand up with only mild embarrassment. “If we figure out the quirks that everyone already knows, then we can figure out the ones who haven’t.”

“Whatever.”

The group walks through the streets, fighting robots when necessary.

“Hey guys!” Pony jumps down from atop a building with Momo climbing down behind her. “Why is Kaibara wearing a cape?”

“I don’t wanna talk about it.”

“How are you guys doing?” Momo asks when she reaches the ground. No one notices her fingertips covered in dust and blood.

“We’re doing good!” Eijirou answers. “We’re trying to figure some quirks out!”

“I got Tetsutetsu’s!”

“Wait you did?!” Tetsutetsu runs up to her.

“Yeah!” She demonstrates this by turning into steel

“Cool! Look, look!” He picks up a rock and throws it, he touches his fingertips together and the rock grows, slamming into a building.

Fumikage has not been having a good day. Since his parting with Togaru it has not been easier taking down robots, and now a boulder nearly slams into him.

“What a mad banquet of darkness…”

Looking towards where it came from, seeing people walking towards him.

“Tokoyami!” Momo yells and most of the group pick up the pace a bit. Katsuki continues to walk at his original speed, maybe a little slower.

“Oh, dude! My bad!” Tetsutetsu goes to his side to check for injuries. “Are you good?”

“There will always be worse things that fate can do to people.”

“That’s… good, right?”

“I am well, yes.”

“So Tokoyami, have you figured out what quirk you have?” Momo asks.

“I…” He pauses for a moment. “No.”

“Well then we’ll help you with it!” She claps her hands together.

“I do have an idea of what it might be but… why are you wearing Aoyama’s cape?”

“Please don’t-” His arms fall to his sides as he goes slack-jawed.

“As I thought.” He nods. “I have Shinsou’s quirk.”

Momo and Pony look at the frozen boy.

“How do you deactivate it?”

“I’m not sure. I’ve never been the target of it before so I’ve never experienced what it takes to make it stop… however…” He gives a tug on the boy’s arm. Nothing. “Apologies, I thought that would work like it had the first time.”

“Aoyama has been through it,” Momo says. “Maybe he knows how…�� She turns around, not seeing him. For someone constantly covered in glitter and wearing a large suit of armor, he’s quite stealthy.

“I’ve got this!” Tetsutetsu steps up to him, grabs him by the shoulders, and begins shaking him violently.

“Tetsutetsu,” Sen says whilst the boy in question continues rattling him back and forth. “Tetsutetsu I’m fine now.”

When he stops, Sen stumbles to steady himself.

“I apologize for my actions, and I won’t ask you about something you don’t want to answer.” Fumikage says with a bow.

“Oh, uh, thank you.”

“Bakugou?!” Eijirou yells.

Katsuki lays unconscious on the ground. Momo runs to his side, placing a hand on his arm.

“He’s burning up.”

“So we should take him to Recovery Girl?”

“I’m not sure her quirk will be able to help him,” Hiryuu picks him up. “But anywhere is better for him than here.”

“Should some of us stay here? There’s no way we’d all be allowed, plus Fukidashi still has to figure out the quirk he got.” Pony says.

“Come on, don’t single me out!”

Momo thinks for a moment. “I’ll take him. As vice representative it is my job to ensure the safety of my classmates.”

“I’ll go, too. Since I’m already holding him.”

The two head off with Katsuki in tow.

“It’s a bust. No matter how much I try it doesn’t work.” Manga crosses his arms.

“Don’t think like that, Fukidashi!” Pony says, patting his back. “Here, I have an idea!”

She moves in front of him and turns steel. She then moves to punch him in the gut, but he moves out of the way.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m giving you an extra push!”

Back in the stands, Nemuri approaches the homeroom teachers.

“There are more kids in the nurse's office.”

Shouta sighs. “This isn’t working.”

“I’ll get Mic to call it off.” Sekijirou stands up. He feels a twinge in his chest, thinking back to the moment. He could have done more. He should have done more.