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the-scouts-codex · 1 year ago

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Summary: “A Housewarden meeting?” Renmu repeats. “Yes, a Housewarden meeting. Normally Housewardens are elected by previous Housewardens and or by challenging one for the position.” The Headmage explained, “Since Ramshackle is still considered a dorm, and You and Grim have taken residence in it, this makes you Housewarden of Ramshackle. Therefore, you now attend Housewarden meetings.”

Scout's Notes: This fic is 11,333 words. Yes, that is a lot of words lol. So I will be posting my work in parts. This is part 3. This fic is also found on A03 here. Thescoutscodex

Part one can be found here. Part 2 is here.

An assortment of food was offered to the table. Foreign dishes were served along with seafood and sweets. The food looked amazing. Everyone took from the shared platters.

“You can thank Jamil, and Trey for the food and sweets.” Jade said happily.

“Yeah thanks to them I didn’t have to do it.” Floyd said happily.

“Thanks for the food.” Renmu said softly.

“You’re quite welcome.” Trey said with a cunning smile.

“Jamil’s cooking is always the best!” Kalim laughed loudly.

“Now, I know some of us have already done so, but we must introduce ourselves.” Azul announced. “Please include titles.”

Leona and Idia groaned. “Leona Kingscholar. Housewarden of Savanaclaw.” Leona growled.

“Ruggie Bucchie.” Ruggie said lazily. “Not a Vice but Leona’s right hand man.”

“Riddle Rosehearts, Housewarden of Heartslabyul.” Riddle said proudly.

“Trey Clover, Vice Housewarden of Heartslabyul.” Trey said, tipping his fedora.

“Cater Diamond, Trey’s right hand man.” Cate said with a wink.

Trey shook his head and laughed. Next was Azul. “Azul Ashengrotto, Housewarden of Octavinelle and Proud owner of Mostro Lounge”

“Jade Leach, Vice Housewarden of Octavinelle.” Jade said smiling.

Floyd sighed. “Floyd Leach. I’m his muscle I guess.”

Renmu was confused. “What do you mean by muscle?”

Floyd, Jade and Azul smirked. “Let’s hope you are never on the receiving end of a beached contract. You will find out why he’s my muscle.” Azul explained.

Renmu’s mouth went dry. He could put two and two together. Jamil took a sip of his drink before speaking.

“Jamil Viper, Vice Housewarden of Scarabia.”

Kalim stood up excitedly. “Yaay, my turn. I’m Kalim Al-Asim, Housewarden of Scarabia!”

Renmu smiled. He was adorable. “Ah, I guess it’s my turn.” Renmu said nervously. “Yuu Renmu desu…A-Ah, I mean, I’m Renmu Yuu. The new Housewarden of Ramshackle.”

Lilia hummed in thought. “Which one is your surname? You introduced yourself to me earlier with Yuu first.”

“Oh, where I come from, we introduce ourselves with our surname first, not our given name.” Renmu explained, “Yuu is my surname, Renmu is my given name.”

“Oh, so like military rules. I would love to learn more about your home when the time comes.” Lilia said.

“As would I.” Riddle announced.

It made Renmu happy that they already wanted to know more about him.

“Keep the line going!” Floyd yelled.

Lilia chuckled. “Lilia Vanrouge, Vice Housewarden of Diasomnia.”

“Malleus Draconia, Housewarden of Diasomnia.” Malleus said.

Vil stood and bowed. “Vil Schoenheit, Housewarden of Pomefiore.”

Rook then stood. Leona, India, and Ruggie groaned. “You know he’s gonna do it…” Idia mumbled.

“I, Le Chasseur d’Amour, Rook Hunt, am the Vice Housewarden of the dorm of beauty, Pomefiore. As well as Vil’s faithful companion.”

Renmu laughed. He loved his energy. “I love the title.”

Rook smiled fondly. “Merci, Amour.”

“Don’t encourage him!” Ruggie whined.

Lastly was the poor Idia at the end of the circle. Idia sighed. “Idia Shroud. Unfortunately, I am the Housewarden of Ignihyde…”

Riddle scowled. “You should take more pride in your status as Housewarden.”

“Don’t wanna…” Idia whined, sitting back down.

Renmu wondered why he didn't like being Housewarden. Couldn’t he just quit? Azul clapped his hands together, getting everyone's attention. “Now that introductions are done, let us enjoy ourselves.”

They went back to their food, casually talking amongst themselves. Idia didn’t say a word. Renmu could definitely relate.

“Renmu, what’s your favorite food?” Lilia asked to start a conversation.

Renmu looked over to Lilia. “Ramen.”

“Eh, seriously!? Mine too. We're like Twinsies” Cater squealed.

Multiple people groaned. “Who says twinsies!?” Ruggie asked, annoyed.

“All the trendy dudes and dudettes do.” Cater replied smiling.

“Sounds so lame.” Idia mumbled.

“Boo so mean.” Cater whined.

“I’m surprised you have Ramen here.” Renmu said, surprised. “It’s my country's native food.”

“Totes cool.” Cater commented.

“What are your hobbies, Renmu?” Lilia asked again.

“Mmm. art, cleaning, fixing things, playing music, dancing, reading, learning, playing logic based games and or video games and sleeping.” Renmu listed.

“Sleeping isn’t a hobby, Renmu.” Riddle said disappointedly.

“Sounds like a hobby to me…” Leona mumbled.

“You like art?” Rook asked happily.

Renmu nodded. “I like to paint and photography.”

“Quelle Beauté!” Rook cried.

“Such diligent and beautiful hobbies you have. Beauty comes from within as well as it does on the outside.” Vil said smiling.

“There he goes, spouting nonsense. Do you play chess at least?” Leona asked. Renmu nodded.

“Hmm, maybe I should play with you to see what you got.” Leona said with a confidant smirk.

“RPGs are better. You have to multitask in those.” Idia chimed in.

“To be honest, my peoples RPGs feature people that use magic. In my world, magic is something part of a fantasy.”

“So weird.” Idia mumbled.

“Does sound a bit strange.” Trey commented.

“That’s good and all but he says he dances.” Jamil repeated.

“Jamil loves to dance Renmu. He can’t resist.” Kalim chirped happily. Jamil rolled his eyes.

“I mean, It’s nothing special. I'm sure the dances my people do would be very weird to you.”

“Oh oh, do it.” Kalim shouted.

Renmu shuddered. “I-I could never dance in front of people. That’s just as bad as asking me to sing.”

“You sing too?” Cater asked.

Renmu nodded once more.

“Aww, I would totes love to hear you sing.”

“As would I.” Lilia chuckled. “I’m not that bad either.”

“Not that bad?” Idia questioned.

“You sang trash metal at the pop culture concert last year. It sounded like screeching.” Cater said with a shudder.

“Trash Metal? You mean like Heavy metal?” Renmu asked.

“Heavy metal?’ Lilia asked.

“Where I come from, heavy metal is intense rock music with screaming.”

“Yes, exactly like that. Do you like that type of music?” Lilia asked.

“Yeah I do.” Renmu replied.

“Where do you come from, Son of man?’ Malleus asked.

“I come from a country called Japan. It doesn’t exist here though.”

“How unfortunate.” Rook said sadly.

“Does your county have its own language? You said something earlier that I did not understand.” Malleus asked.

“Yes. It’s called Japanese.”

“Ooh, Say something in your native tongue for us, dear?” Lilia asked.

“Please?” Cater pleaded.

Renmu sighed with a smile. “I guess saying something wouldn't hurt. Watashi wa Yuu Renmu desu. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.”

They stared at Renmu in awe. “So pretty!” Cater squealed.

“Quelle Beauté!” Rook cried.

“Nothing special. I just introduced myself.” Renmu explained.

“I really want to hear you sing in your native tongue!” Kalim said excitedly.

“Maybe next time.” Renmu mumbled.

“Lilia and I come from the Briar Valley. We are known for our expected magic abilities, though we don’t have a native language.” Malleus explained.

“Ah, what about everyone else?” Renmu asked.

“Trey and I are from the Queendom of Hearts.” Riddle replied.

“Many strange and unique animals there. It’s been said that the flowers once sang during the month of june.” Trey informed him.

“Now I'm curious.” Renmu said in awe.

“I’m from the Shaftlands. Not much else.” Cater said awkwardly.

“I’m also from the shaftlands.” Vil replied. “There are many biomes and districts with different cultures and ways of living. The one I'm from, we still often use its ancient language.

Renmu nodded. “Very interesting. I hope to learn more about them.”

“Jamil and I are from the Scalding sands.” Kalim added. “You should totally come visit. The food is amazing.”

Renmu smiled. “I hope to one day.”

“I’m sure you have realized that Jade, Floyd and I aren’t from here either?” Azul asked.

“Take a guess, Shrimpy.” Floyd insisted.

Renmu took a moment to think. He remembered Floyd saying he smelled like the sea. So maybe they were from a place that was next to the ocean? “Maybe somewhere on the coats? Or a place that’s next to the sea?” Renmu asked.

Floyd made a buzzer noise. “Wrong!”

“We are literally from the sea.” Jade said with a smile.

“Eh, you mean you live in the water?” Renmu asked, surprised.

“Yes.” Azul replied. “We are from the Coral sea. Maybe we could show you one day.”

Renmu deflated. “I-I can’t swim…”

Jade chuckled. “You won’t need to know how to swim. You have potions that will allow you to breathe underwater.”

The idea of a potion that allowed people to breath under water was truly amazing. He would be afraid to try it though.

“Leona and I are from the Sunset Savannah. Most beastmen are from there.” Ruggie explained.

“Unfortunately, Rook is from there too…” Leona mumbled.

“Oh, Roi du Lion, you wounded me. I love being within reach of any quarry. The Sunset Savannah has made me into an excellent hunter. Best of all, I get to observe such potential prey all day.” Rook said with a bone chilling smirk

Renmu could see Ruggie shiver.

“You're a freak pervert who stalks people.” Leona spat.

Rook frowned. “I am no such thing. I’m a hunter, Le Chasseur d’Amour.”

“Leona, please, no fighting.” Riddle said with a sigh. Leona clicked his teeth in annoyance.

“You knowing where I'm from isn’t important…” Idia mumbled. Renmu nodded. He would respect Idia’s choice not to say.

“This is off topic but, why do I smell Tomatoes and Briar Roses.” Lilia asked, sniffing the air.

“Tomatoes?” Leona asked in disbelief.

“It’s Renmu.” Cater teased, wiggling his eyebrows.

Renmu groaned. “I didn’t know the cologne was enchanted. Nor did I know that it was meant to allure people.”

Lilia nuzzled his face into Renmu’s neck. Renmu spazzed and strangled out a gargled noise.The table erupted in laughter. Renmu flushed as red as Riddle's hair.

“What kind of noise was that!?” Ruggie asked.

“Sounded like his soul left his body.” Leona chuckled.

“It did!” Renmu shouted, trying to push Lilia away.

“Aww but you smell good.” He whined, pulling Renmu to him.

“Now he smells like cinnamon and paprika!” Kalim said, sniffing the other side of Renmu.

“Aww, I wanna smell him too.” Floyd whined.

“As do I.” Trey agreed. Renmu sputtered like a fish.

“Kalim, off of him.” Jamil said over a mouthful of curry.

“That’s it, we are switching spots. I want to smell shrimpy!” Floyd demanded. “You guys can’t hog him.”

“No one is hogging him, Floyd.” Riddle reasoned.

“Move down!” Cater and Trey sang.

“H-Hey!”

Once again they shuffled. Renmu was in between Floyd and Trey, actually, Floyd took it upon himself to hold Renmu. Jade was on the other side of them along with Azul. Cater was on the other side of Trey. Leona and Ruggie still haven’t moved. Idia preferred to be on the end next to the isle. Riddle was now next to Leona farther in. Jamil, Kalim, Rook and Vil were now on the other side of Ruggie.

“Must we keep moving?” Vil asked. Vil looked even more beautiful now that he sat across from Renmu. His eyes were covered with smokey purple eyeshadow. His cheeks were powdered and tinted pink with rouge. His lips were covered in a dark purple lipstick.

“We actually do this during our tea parties. We move down until everyone has found a clean cup and an empty seat.” Riddle informed him.

Vil hummed unamused. Vil looked up from his drink to find Renmu staring at him. Renmu flushed and looked down. “I don’t mind your staring. It is quite welcomed.” Renmu flushed more to Vil’s amusement.

“The parties at Scarabia are fun. Lot’s of food, music and dancing!” Kalim said excitedly. “Renmu, come to our dorm for a party.”

Renmu was caught off guard. He was actually being invited to a party. He was never invited to a party before. “A-Are you sure?” Renmu asked cautiously.

“Absolutely. The more people, the merrier.” Kalim said smiling.

Kalim was a ray of sunshine. His happiness was contagious and adorable. He was glad there was someone like him in this school. “Okay, I'll think about it.”

“Yaay, Jamil, we should throw the party tomorrow!”

Jamil coughed on his drink. “Kalim, I have told you before many times, You can’t just declare when you want a party. You have to plan it appropriately.”

Azul chuckled. “Eagered as always.” “Renmu should come to Heartslabyul for a Unbirthday party. It would be totes fun.” Cater added.

“If it’s not a violation to The Queen of Hearts Laws…” Renmu mumbled looking at Riddle.

Riddle smiled fondly. “There is no rule against the Queen of Hearts from inviting others to an Unbirthday party.”

“Sweet!” Cater cheered.

“Ah, it's almost 9pm.” Riddle announced.

“Queen of Hearts Law 96: Cake shall not be eaten after 9pm.” Trey recited. “I’ll bring out the cake.” Trey swiftly scooted out the booth and into the kitchen. Azul waved his staff and all empty plates stacked themselves onto a nearby table. All their glasses refilled themselves. Trey pushed the cake out and on a trolly. The cake was a white, black and blue frosted tiered cake. The tiers were out of order. They looked as if they were balanced carefully.

“The Black frosted cakes are Black Forest cake with strawberry and pomegranate filling. The Blue frosted is white cake with a date filling. The White frosted is Red Velvet with raspberry filling.”

Everyone raised their staff and or magic pens. The cake began to cut itself and each piece floated over to each person.

“Renmu, which one or ones would you like?” Trey asked.

“Black and White, please.”

Trey cut the two flavors for Renmu and passed it to him.

Vil practically moaned. “Trey, this cake is delicious. So much for my diet.”

Trey laughed. “I’m glad you like it. It seems black and white are very popular.”

The tweels had blue and Black cake. Azul and Cater had blue. Riddle, Ruggie, Jamil, Idia, Trey, and Renmu had black and white. Kalim had all three to Jamil's dismay. Lilia and Leona had a slice of blue cake. Rook had Blue and white and Malleus had Black and blue. They all ate their cake with the prospect of savoring it. Except for Leona who practically inhaled it. Trey really was a good baker.

“There is one more slice of Black and White. Who-”

“Me.”

Vil, Malleus, Ruggie, Rook, Riddle, and Idia looked at one another.

“Well, Trey can easily bake more for me.” Riddle said, crossing his arms.

“If Roi du Poison wants it, he can have it.” Rook declared with passion.

“I rather not fight for it.” Idia mumbled.

“Not that big of a deal.” Leona slurred.

Vil, Ruggie, Malleus were left.

“You all know what that means.” Cater said smugly.

“If that’s how we are settling for it, then I'll join.” Idia said.

“I guess I will too.” Riddle chimed in.

Vil huffed. “If we must. Everyone, move down.”

Everyone began to scoot down out of the booth. Renmu was confused. “Hmm, how do you all settle for it?” Renmu asked, as Floyd scooted them out.

“Musical chairs,” Floyd said, amused.

5 chairs were placed into the middle of the room back to back. Vil, Idia, Riddle, Malleus, and Ruggie were standing around the chairs.

“You guys play musical chairs for the last of something?” Renmu asked.

“Oh yeah. I onced suggested that we “crawl” for it. That ended up with food everywhere, Riddle blowing a casket, and Leona trying to claw Malleus’s face off.” Cater said, chuckling. “So yeah, this is less dangerous.”

“Last chance for those who want the cake!” Trey called.

“Oh fine, I’ll join!” Lilia said, running down to the others. He tossed his coat to Renmu. Renmu took it and folded it neatly on his lap.

“Are you sure you don’t wanna do it?” Cater asked Renmu.

Renmu just shrugged, holding onto Lilia’s coat. Trey added one more chair and stuck two on the outside and four in the center. “Alright, you all know the rules. No magic at all in this game. Just force.” Trey reminds them.

“Also, anything that becomes damaged must be paid for.” Azul said happily.

“Ready?” Jade asked, standing next to a music player.

They all nodded and or said yes. Jade pushed the play button and the music started. They all began to walk around the chairs clockwise. Cater was recording them from the steps. They went round and round the chairs. Vil was holding his train to keep the others from stepping on it. Lilia was dancing behind Malleus who just walked normally. Jade pressed the stop button and they all sat down quickly.

“Nice, now, let the real fun begin.” Trey declared, removing one of the chairs.

Chaos began to unfold once Trey removed that chair. Idia didn’t make it to a chair in time. To be honest, Renmu didn’t think he really cared anymore. There were 4 chairs left now. The music started and they went around the chairs again. Lilia was still dancing around the chairs happily. Vil looked like he was on a catwalk. Riddle walked around with poise. Jade stopped the music abruptly. They rushed for a chair, pushing one another to sit in it. Vil practically hip bumped Ruggie out the chair.

“Oi, No fair!” Ruggie growled.

“Hah, you got bumped by that pompous Prima donna's butt!” Leona chuckled lazily.

Vil gasped. “You say it as if I have a big butt!”

“Your butt is as beautiful as you, Bella Vil!” Rook cried affectionately.

Renmu burst out laughing. Wheezing and snorting. He almost sounded like a mule. He covered his mouth and covered his face as he laughed. Vil looked at Renmu in disgust.

“His laugh is so cute!” Lilia chuckled.

“It absolutely isn’t!” Vil argued.

Ruggie walked back up to the stairs and sat next to Renmu. The music started again and they went around in circles. The sound of their heels echoed through the room. Vil started swaying his hips to the music. Renmu found it endearing. Jade stopped the music. They scrambled for seats quickly. Malleus and Vil secured their chairs. Riddle and Lilia fought over the other. Lilia and Riddle pushed and shoved one another for the chair. Heels scuffing and clicking on the floor. Both of their faces contorted into aggression and determination. Riddle went as far as to drag the chair with him. Ruggie howled in laughter. Lilia stole the chair back and dragged it back to his side. Both of them jumped onto the chair. Lilia was faster and Riddle flopped onto the floor.

‘YES!” Lilia cheered.

Riddle huffed in annoyance as he got up and brushed himself off. Riddle walked back over to the rest of them. Trey discreetly brushed Riddle's butt off for him as he walked by.

“You're cutting it close now.” Cater hollored.

Trey removed another chair from the mix. There were two left. The three of them didn’t look as if they wanted to give in. Jade started the music promptly after. They walked around the two chairs faster. Malleus was just taking bigger strides. Jade stopped the music soon after. Vil grabbed the chair and sat down. Malleus and Lilia fought tooth and nail for the other. Malleus bumped Lilia away from the chair and sat in it.

“And you guys talk about my butt.” Vil said, crossing his arms.

“Malleus, after all we've been through?” Lilia said, panting on the floor beside him.

“Sorry, I want cake.” Malleus said with a coy smile.

Lilia got up giggling. “I could bake you one.”

Malleus visibly shuddered. Lilia smiled and walked over to Renmu and sat behind him. Now one chair was left. Vil stared down Malleus, Malleus just smiled.

“Kick that horned bastard's butt!” Leona roared.

Jade turned the music on and the battle began. They ran around the chair this time. Vil suppressed a giggle as he held his train. Lilia swayed Renmu with him to the music. Floyd waltzed over to Jade and switched the music to something more upbeat. “Run faster!” he commanded.

Vil and Malleus ran faster around the chair and Floyd stopped the music as they were in mid run. They slipped and slid to get to the chair. Vil was draped over the chair, trying to climb into it. Malleus yanked the chair away, dragging Vil with him. Leona roared with laughter.

“He’s dragging him like a rag doll!” Ruggie laughed out.

Vil had no means of letting go.

“Let go.” Mallues ordered.

“NEVER!” Vil Shouted back.

Vil kept scrambling to get up but Malleus prevented him from doing so. Vil kicked the chair from Malleus. The chair skidded away and they scrambled for it. Vil grabbed Malleus’s legs, causing him to fall. Vil skipped over him to the chair. Malleus pulled his train, causing Vil to stumble back. Renmu was in tears at how funny the scene was. They all watched them fight in amusement. Vil flopped over the chair again. Malleus pulled at his legs to get him off. Vil kicked and thrashed at Malleus. His boot flew off, sending Malleus backwards. Vil Scrambled into the chair and sat down. Vil threw his hands up and rejoiced. “Yes! Yes! It’s mine!”

Malleus started to laugh from his spot on the floor. Vil crossed his legs as he calmed down but went back into a fit of laughter.

“Vil wins the two slices of cake.” Trey said laughing. “Don’t worry, I'll make you a special cake next time, Malleus.”

Vil summoned a hand mirror and checked his appearance. “I still look beautiful.”

Renmu couldn't suppress his laughter. This was the most fun he’s had in ages. Trey wrapped up Vil’s cake for him and they cleaned up the mess. The chair took quite a beating. Vil and Malleus agreed to split the cost. Either way, Azul was pleased. It was getting late so they all agreed to end the festivities.

“Aww, I wish we could hang out more.” Cater whined.

“We can always do this again, Cater.” Trey reasoned.

“Yeah I know. But it was so much fun.” Cater sighed.

“It was.” Riddle said fondly.

They all walked back to Octavinells Mirror together. Renmu took in the quiet aquatic life around them again as they walked.

“We totes need to take a group photo.” Cater declared.

“I wouldn’t mind that.” Riddle said.

“I wouldn’t either.” Jade agreed.

“C’mon, group photo!” Cater yelled.

They all go into position. There was so much scrambling and shoving going on for a few seconds until everyone found a proper spot. Cater used magic to let his phone rise into the air to get everyone to fit. “Ready!?” Cater asked.

“Ready!” A few of them said in unison. The phone snapped a few pictures of them before coming back down into Caters hands. “I’ll send everyone the group photo and all the photos I took tonight.” Cater said with a cheeky wink.

“Have a good night you all.” Azul said.

“I want to hug shrimpy.” Floyd said lazily.

Renmu walked over to Floyd and hugged him to his surprise. Jade hugged the back of Renmu.

“Bye bye, shrimpy.” Floyd giggled.

“Bye Floyd.” Renmu mumbled.

Floyd reluctantly let Renmu go. The rest of them walked back through the mirror to the Hall of Mirrors. Everyone walked over to their respected mirrors.

“Goodbye, Renmu!” Kalim said, hugging Renmu. “I can’t wait to party with you again.”

Renmu just smiled. Not knowing what to say.

“See you all later.” Jamil said, pulling Kalim along through the Mirror of Scarabia.

“TTYL, Renmu.” Idia mumbled before walking through his Mirror.

Leona ruffled Renmu’s hair. “You’re not so bad, herbivore. Let’s go, Ruggie.” Leona said walking through the mirror.

“See ya, prefect.” Ruggie waved, running after Leona.

“Until next time, Roi du Mystery.” Rook cried dramatically. Renmu waved him goodbye.

Vil huffed. “You're not too bad, Prefect. I wish to style you though next time. Let’s go, Rook.”

“Yes, Roi du Poison.” The two of them waltzed through their mirror together.

“Son of Man.” Renmu looked up at Malleus and smiled.

“Thanks for remembering me. I would have never had fun tonight if you didn’t invite me.”

“You’re welcome.” Renmu said softly.

“Thank you for the good time. In my day, I would have never done something so fun.” Lilia said, chuckling.

“Always talking as if you are old.” Trey said laughing.

“Maybe I am.” Lilia said coyly. “Come, Malleus. The others are waiting for our return.” Malleus and Lilia walked through their mirror one after the other. Lilia blew Renmu a kiss goodbye before fully stepping in.

“Would you like us to walk you back, Renmu?’ Trey asked.

Renmu shook his head. “I’ll be fine.”

“Well goodnight Renmu.” Trey said smiling.

“Goodnight Renny.” Cater cooed, hugging Renmu tightly.

“Goodnight, Renmu.” Riddle said lastly.

“Goodnight.” Renmu mumbled.

Cater finally let go and blew him a kiss goodbye like Lilia did. They went in one by one, disappearing beyond the looking glass. Renmu sighed to himself and walked back to Ramshackle. The night air was chilly. The wind rustled the tree above. Renmu smiled to himself, recalling the night's events. This was the first time he was ever invited to a party, let alone to have fun. This was the first time he had ever gotten to know so many people. The first time he has ever had the prospect of making friends and was promised to be included in the future. The first time he was part of something. It made Renmu giddy inside and out. Renmu couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across his face. He was happy for the first time in forever. He missed the feeling it gave him inside. This is what happiness was. Renmu couldn’t wait for more happy days to come.

You have reached the end of First Impressions! I hope you enjoyed this fic. (ﾉ´ヮ`)ﾉ*: ･ﾟ

To read another Codex, click here for my Archives.

For background information on this fic, click here Scout's Notes.

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muraenide · 1 year ago

Note

25. bloody kiss (mostrohost)

KISSING MEME PROMPTS: -> { NOT ACCEPTING }

25. bloody kiss — Azul / @mostrohost

The room is cold, bleak, and completely dark. It was quiet, nary a sound or thing moved since the past 30 minutes when the last cry died out. Something sinister hangs in the air, the remnants of something inhumanly nefarious. Hidden behind the darkness is a grisly, visceral scene that would churn the stomachs of most of the students in the school. The muffled screams of the victims whose blood painted the walls never made it beyond the door, shut and magic-proofed so that it rebounds only within these walls. At this moment the spell would have dwindled, Jade had already allowed the last survivor to flee through the door, left ajar so a thin ray of white light from the outside seeps through it.

Out of breath, Jade slides to the ground at the furthest side of the room. The butcher from a while ago had tempted him into a crazed frenzy. He almost lost control of himself breaking limbs and snapping necks into two; humans were weak and far too easy to kill. They were nothing to sneeze at compared to mildly larger prey in the Coral Sea who could at least put up a decent fight before they go down. His sharp teeth tore into the soft, tender flesh far too effortlessly, ripping it into ribbons.

A hand rests on his chest as he wills himself to calm down, to not give in to his roots, reminding himself that he is on the surface and that there are people watching him. His lashes lift as a white-gloved hand rests itself on the knob and pushes the door slightly open. He lifts a hand to shield his eyes from the light just as it reaches his face.

"What on earth happened here?" Azul gasps, more upset rather than horrified. "I thought I told you not to take it too far."

Jade cackles emptily. "Can you blame me, Azul? It's simply far too much fun." He grimaces, "Besides, you give back what you take. It's a simple concept. The indebtors knew when they signed the contracts."

"Well," Azul pushes his glasses up, "They are no use dead to me. And people will ask us questions. This only spells trouble."

Azul is right. As he always is. Sometimes Jade is just as bad as Floyd if not much worse, if he ever cared enough to admit.

"Right. Of course. My apologies for not having thought of that."

Jade pushes himself to stand up. He wobbles sluggishly. His vision is still too feeble as it fought to readjust itself back to the light. The sinister air seems to alleviate a little bit with Azul's presence, though the chill remains on the scribbles on the wall, the victims' final messages calling for help as they begged for mercy. Jade bends down to pick his bloody fedora back up and slaps it onto his head, then he skips over to Azul.

"I left a survivor to pass the message around," He says, voice disgustingly sweet, as if he's doing him a favour, "You must admit. It's very effective."

A blood-clad and blood-stained glove slithers up Azul's jaw as he gently places a kiss on his lips, leaving long reddened streaks behind. "Don't worry. I'll clean the place up myself."

"If anyone asks, you only have to deny any responsibility and shove everything to me. I'll know how to handle it." Another playful, reassuring nudge on his cheek as Jade proceeds to return to his room, humming a song while he dances on his way.

#mostrohost #𖦹 ⋆꙳ ⁄ ic.

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diimpledoll · 2 months ago

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💌

I'm thinking of you laying there on the bed of a dimly lit room, in your flirty little skirt just waiting for someone to take you.

I start slowly getting closer to you starring you down, letting you know just how bad I want you. You start to feel the tension in the room escalating and I can hear your breathing pattern changing. I’m now just next to you, I start softly running my hand up the inside of your leg, inner thigh all the way to your stomach. I pause, take a glimpse at you, I want to see how you’re reacting to my touch. We briefly lock eyes and that’s my signal, your insistant lustful gaze has betrayed you. You haven’t uttered a single word but your body has now made it clear, you’re enjoying this moment and you sure as hell don’t want this to stop.

So I pick up where I left at, I start to run my hand on your body once more reaching for your hips, I lean my head closer to yours, gaze at your face for awhile. I slowly run my other hand trough your hair, down your neck and shoulder. Your skin feels so soft. I decide to play with the strap of your bra for a while, trying to figure out if I should take it off just now, as I push your strap to the side of your shoulder. And in that moment, as I begin to undress you, you start to feel particularly vulnerable, the intimacy of the moment is very shooting, isn’t it.

As I make my way up your upper back with my hand, you start to blush, your cheeks are turning red and you are submerged by a wave of burning desire, and you probably haven’t even noticed but your hips instinctively moved closer to me.

I have you stand up for me as I begin to wonder just how to dispose of you.

Should I start by making my way up, slowly grazing the exterior of your of thighs with the back of my hand ?

Or perhaps I should start by standing firmly in front of you, pinning you up against the wall, staring you right in the eyes.

Yeah.. I like the sound of that.

So I get real close to you, you start to take a step back. I keeptrying to get closer and you match my pace, for every step forward I take you take one backwards. Our eyes are locked and you start to grin because you know what’s coming next, it’s almost like we’re dancing really. But now I have you cornered, your back’s against the wall. So I lean in real close to you, guide your arms above your head, let out a couple of warm heavy breathes onto your neck.

You have me seduced, I can barely contain myself. Having you there hands up against the wall, it’s a bliss but you realize there's no going back. It's just you and me baby girl, in that moment you become entirely mine.

I have you spread your legs open for me, just a little bit.

I’m taking my time with you, contemplating that beautiful body of yours.

You're eye candy to me, and I'd make sure you know that by the way I looked at you. Let you know how every single one of your curves draws me just a little bit closer to the edge.

..I’m thinking about just how hard it is for me to contain myself, but you're worth it, I want to take all the time in the world for you.

I take your cheek in the palm of my hand and slowly move my lips closer to yours, only to deny you of that kiss at the last moment and get close to your ear.

Whisper something along the lines of

"you know.. I'm really enjoying this. Knowing that you're mine to take. Having your body under my control, all of you, at the mercy of my touch. Yeah that's right, I want you to surrender your body to me, surrender to my touch, precious. »

Of course I'd have started to run my fingers around the string of your panties, playing around with them, teasing you.

…Should I push them aside and reach for the promised land like your body is begging me to do ? Or should I continue to tease you and just pull your panties upward just a bit, have them spread your lips open for me..?

You strike me as the fedora-wearing type.

Please, if it is the last thing you do, look up beam_me_up_softboi on instagram

#ask #I swear the Insta page is your kind of people #you will find acceptance there #stop sending creepy asks to people weirdo #cheers

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cursedcola · 2 years ago

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hello!! hope you're having a wonderful day so far! i'd like to ask for some h/cs for the hat wearing guys, please. (Trey, rook, jade, azul) when they're about to kiss gn!s/o, they instead pull their hat down over their eyes, delighted that they caught them off guard. how would they react? of course, later they get lots of kisses from s/o to make up for it. i'm still reading through all your writing and i love it so much its hard to stop. thank you so much for all you do!!

A/N: So cute!!! I'm so glad that you like my writing. It's so much fun bringing these ideas to life. I've never heard of anyone referring to this group as the hat guys, but I absolutely love it! I hope this lives up to your expectations :)

Trey Clover

"Well, you sure are dressed up. I'm not complaining, but isn't it a bit much for a teaparty?"

As is everyday, it was high-noon and time for tea at the Heartslabyul dormitory. Trey was busying himself with setting the dining area, as the remaining students trailed in to take their seats. Just another part of the daily routine for any Heartslabyul student worth their salt.

Well, almost routine, since recently there have been minor amendments. One allowing students from other dormitories to join in, making the scene far more lively than months prior.

For Trey, this new way of life extends beyond minor rule-bending. With the newfound change came his s/o, the catalyst for making life as a Heartslabyul student more enjoyable. He chuckles into his fist as you twirl, showing off your party clothes that are tailored to match his dorm colors.

Coming to an abrupt halt, you lean over to pull his fist down. He lifts an eyebrow in confusion, waiting as your hand moves to caress the back of his head.

Trey's muscles relax, as he dips forward to receive your kiss. Yet the moment your lips are about to touch, he's gone blind!

Your giggles fill the air after quickly backing away. An airy, "was that 'a bit much'?" sounds from you as he fixes his fedora. In truth, Trey had a gut feeling that you would pull a stunt. He can't even pretend to be angry before a soft kiss meets his cheek.

You pull away with a grin, wiping tears from laughter out your eyes. Ah, now that was a pleasant surprise.

"For that trickery, I believe you owe me more than just one. My other cheek is feeling a bit left out,"

Rook Hunt

Every nickname must be earned. There is a reason that Rook calls his s/o a, "trickster". You are so playful, making his life shine like the luminescent moon. Radiant yet omniscient.

If Rook was a fish, his s/o knows just how to reel him in and let the line go. Keeping him on his toes, yet ultimately leaving him at your mercy.

"Now is not the time for obstinacy, my dearest. Please save me from this fortress of solitude with your blessing,"

It was unfortunate, truly. For the day's alchemy lesson, Rook's class focused potions of paralysis. You had been partnered together, and due to his negligence your clothes ended up ruined. Not only that, but you were stuck paralyzed for over an hour as the antidote was being brewed. If only he hadn't been so flamboyant in presenting your work-

"I beg of you. At least look at me," he dramatically reaches to grasp your hand, only for it to sit limp in his palm. You anger for his mistake was long gone, but he looked so desperate for your attention. Why not have some fun?

Turning towards him, you uphold a front of anger. Pulling your hand from his grasp, you gently pull on his tie - urging him to come closer.

He complies, taking note of your sudden change in mood. He fails to notice the smirk on your lips as you lean in for a kiss.

When he feels your breath fan his lips. Rook's defenses fall and his eyes close in anticipation. Not a moment after there is a sharp tug on his head, and he's blind with footfalls echoing in the distance.

Ah - he understands now. Feeling a bit playful, he watches you run while fixing his hat and tie.

He tuts playfully, making sure to annunciate down the hall, "Non, Non. This will not do. Hide all you like my little Trickster, but if I catch you then those lips will be my prize,"

Jade Leech

It had been a busy night for the Monstro Lounge. With exam week nearing it's end, many students were skipping their meals to study in the library. Azul had predicted this, and offered limited-time 'exam specialty,' hours where the restaurant would stay open for an extra hour every night. It just so happened to be the hour after the library closes, and so hungry students were eager to grab a convenient yet sickeningly overpriced meal.

Of course, this means that the lunge would require extra staff; and who better for the job than the broke prefect?

You needed the extra cash, Azul needed the help, Floyd needed the free entertainment, and Jade? Well, he is not opposed to your company. It was his idea to hire you in the first place...

Oh, yeah. You're also his partner. What better excuse to keep an eye on you, other than working together?

Jade watches you from his spot behind the bar, drying glasses with a dish rag. The restaurant had just closed, and you were helping buss tables.

You approach with the last tub of dishes, setting them on the counter and hanging up your apron to return home.

"Going somewhere?" He says, looking over his shoulder with a disapproving stare. You cannot leave until he is ready to walk you home.

You pause, and eye the pile of dishes he has yet to finish washing. As if sensing your impatience, he slows down cleaning them purposefully. The taunting is successful, making you groan and approach his side.

Instead of helping, you reach up to caress his cheek, watching as he continues to clean. This satisfies him, and for a moment there is silence as you admire his face.

Jase sees you move in his peripheral vision, and next you're a mere inch from his face, shamelessly eyeing his lips.

He pauses his movements, waiting for you move. Just when your lips are about to meet, he feels a kiss planted on his nose and his hat being shoved over his eyes

When he lifts his hat, you are speedily cleaning the remaining dishes - acting as if nothing just happened.

"It's rather late. Would you care to stay in one of Octavinelle's guest rooms? Rather than currency, I will accept payment via other means. Thirteen kisses should suffice,"

Azul Ashengrotto

"Could you p-please get off my desk? I am trying to work,"

Azul regrets ever giving you a key to his office. He had done so out of pity, considering that you rarely ever see each other. Between classes, your friends causing a ruckus, his buisness, and the student council - he felt bad that you were lonesome. It's not like he missed you or anything, psshh. He is definetly not the lonely one. Perish the thought! It is you!

He did not expect for you to make his workspace into a playground. He might as well order a new sofa, because you have made one of them into a makeshift bed. Whenever he is in or has free-time, you are there on his heels. You have spare clothes in one of his desk drawers, snacks in the closet, and have even begun to decorate.

Don't you get it!? He can't focus with you and your distractions around. Everyone who comes in teases him for going soft, and he's losing deals because you're filling his thoughts all the time.

This time he has an important negotiation to prep for, and so he kicked you out. Not too long after comes Floyd charging in all smug. Telling Azul to 'have a look,' in the main lounge and what does he find?

Half his guests ogling as you worked the room, finding new entertainment by talking with everyone. Boosting his sale revenue by twenty-percent but that is not the point!

Oh, you are so petty. Trying to spite him by making him jealous, even getting Floyd to make him come watch (He doesn't know if you did this, but is too flustered to think straight).

"Floyd," he says through clenched teeth, eyeing one student getting a bit too friendly with you at a booth, "Bring them to my office this instant...and escort that other deviant off the premises,". Azul returns to his office, with his friend laughing in his wake. Soon there is a nock on the door, and he watches from his desk as your head peers in.

With a sigh, he returns to his work as you skip back inside. He fully expected for you to return to the couch, and freezes when you hop on his desk. Right in the corner of his vision, with your legs swinging as you watch him work.

His head snaps up, glasses going askew at the sudden motion. You giggle into your fist, with your other hand reaching to fix them for him. His protests fall to deaf ears as you lean closer, caging him in with your arms on either side of his head. They grasp his chair, pulling him closer. He drops his pen, "This is h-highly inappropriate (y/n)! Someone could come-" and his breath hitches when your face is inches away from his own.

Azul gives in, leaning forward slightly to ghost your lips. He waits for them to meet, and sputters when he kisses cloth instead

Not only did you pull his hat down, but you undid his die to hold it in place over his eyes! In the time it takes for Azul to undo the mess, you've jumped from his desk and made yourself at home on the couch.

He's left breathless, with his glasses partially fogged up, tie undone, hair tussled, and ink from his pen all over his hand.

Just then, another knock sounds through his office, "Azul, the guest is here and waiting in the lounge. Should I escort them in?"

He nearly panics as you watch from the couch, a hand clutching your mouth as you try to stifle a laugh. With a smirk, he holds eyecontact with you and responds to Jade.

"Provide them with a complimentary beverage and inform them that I will bee fifteen minutes late. An emergency has arisen, and I need to handle it promptly,"

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dialovers-translations · 3 years ago

Text

4,000 FOLLOWERS CELEBRATION: MY MOM RATES THE S & M BOYS + YUI

I reached 4,000 followers on this blog today, so as promised, I had my mom give her opinions on the S & M boys + Yui. I didn’t do the Tsukinamis and Kino because I’m not too familiar with them myself and I wanted to give my mom some basic information on their backstory/personality as well.

I showed her all of the brothers first upon her requests, because she wanted to know what they all looked like before giving individual scores.

YUI - 9/10

My mom: “She’s pretty. I like her big eyes and her curly hair.”

SHUU - 9/10

Me: “He’s Mr. Popular and always wins all of the popularity polls btw.”

My mom: “I can see why. He’s definitely the most handsome out of his brothers.”

REIJI - 7/10

My mom: “Nah. I don’t like the looks of this guy.”

Me: “He’s the one who cooks and cleans for the whole family.”

My mom: “Okay that kind of redeems him. He’s getting bonus points for that.”

AYATO - 0/10

Me: “So he’sーー”

My mom: *turns her head away* “NO. NEXT.”

Me: “Mom! I haven’t even explained his personality yet!”

My mom: “He’s scary. Are you trying to give me nightmares? NEXT.”

KANATO - 6/10

My mom: “Much better than the last one.”

Me: “Really? What makes you say that?”

My mom: “Well, he looks kind of sad, which makes me feel bad for him.”

LAITO - 6/10

My mom: “He’s fine but so effiminate. I could easily mistake him for a girl.”

Me: “He’s a big playboy, actually.”

My mom: “Eh. Still too effiminate.”

SUBARU - 7.5/10

Me: “Okay so you obviously know Subaru. You can be honest though. My feelings won’t be hurt.”

My mom: *shrugs* “I really have no opinion on this guy.”

Me: Mom you need to make this interesting for my Tumblr followers.

My mom: “Next.”

RUKI - 9.5/10

My mom: “Now we’re talking. This is a solid 9.5/10.”

Me: “He’s like the other guy who does the cooking and cleaning, but for his family.”

My mom: “Make that a 10/10.”

Me: “He’s also a horrible perfectionist though. If you don’t meet his standards, he will ‘re-educate’ you.”

My mom: “Okay back to 9.5/10 he goes.”

KOU - 6.5/10

My mom: “Why are all these guys so girly? This one is even worse than the fedora guy.”

Me: “They’re pretty boys mom.”

My mom: “I want a guy who looks like a man.”

YUMA - 5/10

My mom: “Girl hair.”

Me: “This guy could crush you with his pinkie finger, mom.”

My mom: BUT LOOK! *covers part of the screen with her hand so only his eyes and hair are visible* Look at this and tell me it doesn’t look like a woman?

Me: “He’s my favorite of this family, actually.”

My mom: “I’ll have some mercy and give him 5/10, okay?”

AZUSA - 6.5/10

My mom: “He’s similar to the one with the purple hair. He looks sad, so you can’t help but pity him in some way.”

Me: “So why does he score higher?”

My mom: “He doesn’t have the eye bags, so he gets half a point more.”

#non-translation #I'm sorry most of these are short #my mom really doesn't get anime/manga and its style #so it was very difficult for her to comment on most of these #also I'm pretty sure Subaru only ranked this high because she knows how much I love him xD #because she literally had NOTHING to say about him lol

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nightingaelic · 3 years ago

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New Vegas companions react to the Courier being approched by Vulpes Inculta on the Strip and receiving the Mark of Caesar.

The sun beat down over New Vegas and the gamblers milling around the Strip, and it temporarily blinded the courier and their companion as they stepped outside of the Tops. The glare of the Mojave afternoon obscured the man who approached them from where he had been waiting, and they were still blinking away spots when he took hold of their arm and pressed something into their hand. "The eyes of the mighty Caesar are upon you. He admires your accomplishments, and bestows upon you the exceptional gift of his Mark."

The courier squinted, first at him, then at the Legion Denarius with a hole punched in it and threaded into a necklace. "Come again?"

The man in the brown suit and fedora smiled. It was an innocent expression, but it had an unnerving edge to it that cut through the sunlight. "Any crimes you may have perpetrated against the Legion are hereby forgiven. Caesar will not extend this mercy a second time."

The courier clutched the coin hard, eyes widening. "Nipton. That voice... it's you."

Arcade Gannon: Arcade's eyes narrowed and he crossed his arms. "So Mr. House doesn't care that one of Caesar's most notorious Legion spies is walking around on the Strip," he said testily. "Either that or his Securitrons' AI is too primitive to recognize the threat. Neither answer is particularly comforting."

"I'm honored that you've heard of me," Vulpes Inculta replied, inclining his head as though accepting a compliment. "Though it does make me question my own effectiveness as an agent."

"If you're looking for career advice, then I'd suggest you retire," Arcade shot back. "Immediately. And leave the Mojave forever."

He glanced at the courier. "Are we giving this murderer the time of day, or should I meet you back at the fort?"

Craig Boone: Boone took the mysterious man in, looking him up and down from behind his sunglasses. The Legion agent's wicked smile widened, as if he was daring the NCR sniper to make a scene.

Well, Boone didn't back down from a challenge. He had his rifle up in a beat and the Mojave air cracked. The stranger's smile froze on his face, and he fell backward with a brand-new hole in his chest.

Screams erupted among the passersby, and men and women in uniforms, lingerie and their Sunday best ran every which way in the street. The courier, however, stayed put and stared at Boone as the Strip cleared around them.

Boone shrugged. "He got what was coming to him."

Lily Bowen: "A spy," Lily agreed immediately.

Vulpes Inculta looked taken aback. "Come again, mutant?"

The courier stepped in front of the nightkin defensively. "Her name is Lily. And she knows a spy when she sees one."

Lily nodded. "I got very good at spotting them for the Master. I was a spy, too."

Vulpes wrinkled up his nose in disgust. "Indeed. My Lord requires your presence at his camp, at Fortification Hill. His Mark will guarantee your safe-conduct through our lands."

"An invitation!" Lily said excitedly. "But from a spy. Be careful, pumpkin."

Raul Alfonso Tejada: Raul's eyebrows shot up. "El zorro. Where's your coyote head?"

"As the greatest of Caesar's Frumentarii, I am skilled in the art of avoiding notice," Vulpes Inculta answered, in a patient tone that was an inch away from becoming a sneer. "Bearing the uniform of a Vexillarius would attract unwanted attention to my mission today."

"On the Strip?" Raul glanced over at a group of Gomorrah strippers who were passing by, decked out in leather, feathered boots, and a few masks that looked like they had been unearthed in a pre-war Mardi Gras supplies store. "Neta?"

Vulpes gave him a withering look. "Verdad."

The courier elbowed Raul.

Rose of Sharon Cassidy: Cass spit out the toothpick she'd been chewing on. "First Vegas, now NCR and Legion? You're being courted more than a Redding widow, Six."

"This is the guy," the courier answered nervously, slapping her arm repeatedly. "The one I told Ghost about. He burned Nipton down and was being super nonchalant about it."

"Oh, shit." Cass fumbled for the shotgun on her back. "You here to kill us?"

"We'll take a lot of you with us!" The courier added indignantly.

"The mighty Caesar has bestowed upon you his Mark and guaranteed safe-conduct," Vulpes replied, offended. "If he wanted you dead, you would be dead already."

Veronica Santangelo: Veronica eyed the man suspiciously for a beat before piping up. "Nope, still thinking about the rape, slavery and general marauding. I guess an outfit change doesn't really help the whole Legion image after all."

Vulpes Inculta ignored her. "My Lord requires your presence at his camp, at Fortification Hill. His Mark will guarantee your safe-conduct through our lands."

"Oh, right." Veronica snapped her fingers. "She's a woman, why bother listening? I get enough of this from my family, I really don't need it from sexually-repressed jerkwads, too."

That got the Frumentarius' attention. "Hold your tongue, Scribe."

Veronica stuck the offending appendage out at him. "Make me."

ED-E: The eyebot at the courier's side beeped a warning and bobbed anxiously against their shoulder. The courier looked up at it and nodded. "I know. Don't worry, I can handle him."

Rex: Rex growled and sniffed the man's legs over. To the courier's surprise, he came away without barking, but the growl persisted.

"He doesn't like your hat," the courier explained.

Vulpes Inculta bared his head. "My apologies."

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arctimon · 2 years ago

Text

Big Hero 6 - On Hallow’s Eve, Watch Over Me

I hope that everyone had a good Halloween, and you got literally all the candy. I, on the other hand, spent the evening watching three dogs and a sister give out candy as dinosaurs.

No, I will not be giving any further context.

Either way, every time Halloween comes around, it reminds me of the story that I’ve wanted to write every Halloween, but never got around to: the Big Hero 6/Overwatch sort-of crossover.

I say sort-of because it’s not like Mercy and Tracer are going to show up in San Fransokyo. At least...not physically.

I have made a few references to Overwatch in my stories (mostly in Highway to Hell), and I think it would be a perfect way for the team to get into alternate characters. Of course, things would never be that easy, especially if they have to do some heroics during Halloween night.

I haven’t gotten around to figuring out what exactly they’d be doing (if I was sadistic, probably pushing a payload or something), But I do have a pretty good idea of who’d they be going as.

Here’s the big bad list:

Hiro Hamada - Wrecking Ball (Potassium)

Funny story behind this one. I would imagine that after staying up all night for a few consecutive days (including his costume), he loses his voice and has to have a voice module talk for him, which is where the robot’s voice comes from. Plus, his grappling hook is the closest thing to the magnetic coils he uses (and he ain’t no Widowmaker, that’s for sure).

Honey Lemon - Mercy (Witch)

Pretty self explanatory. Plus, you have to go for the Witch one. It’s her most popular skin.

Baymax - Orisa (Carbon Fiber) Again, I think this one is pretty obvious. She even has a voice line riffing off of him (”Are you satisfied with your care?”). She doesn’t have much of a red skin sans the team ones, so I went with the most futuristic one.

Go Go - Lucio (Jazzy)

Now, I know what you’re thinking. Why would you make Go Go Lucio? Well, for one, have you seen Go Go’s actual Halloween costume in “Obake Yashiki”? She doesn’t want to do any work. All she needs is a set of roller blades and she’s set.

I at least wanted to jazz her up a bit with her skin. I think even Go Go would appreciate a good fedora/top hat/whatever Lucio’s wearing in this skin.

Fredzilla - Doomfist (Lake)

Fred and a giant blue fist? Count me in.

Wasabi - Genji (Blackwatch)

I gave Wasabi Genji because of his affinity for blades, and also because at the time I was doing all of this (which was a while ago), Baptiste hadn’t come out yet. I suppose that the combat healer would be a better fit for him, but something about him having a giant dragon blade just fills me with glee.

Karmi - Symmetra (Classic)

When I was searching for screenshots for Karmi, I had completely forgotten the gauntlet. I have no idea how, but it makes her fit in even well. The hardlight turrets, the giant wall ultimate, the general disregard for things out of order. It all fits. And you can’t go wrong with the classic Symmetra look.

Now the question is whether or not she’ll kill Hiro for having leggings that high. XD

Aunt Cass - Ana (Horus)

Older woman who drinks tea and is the mother of the group? Pretty obvious.

Megan - Sombra (Talon)

A young Mexican girl that can turn invisible and can turn out the lights with EMPs? Even more obvious.

I was contemplating the Talon skin and her Glitch one, but this one would probably be the “tamer” one. Methinks that Chief Cruz wouldn’t like her shaving half of her head to get into character.

Although would that even stop her?

Juniper - Zarya (Totally 80′s)

Yes, June’s not Russian, and has slightly less musculature than Zarya, but the costume is a spitting image. Maybe give her Gravity Cannon an electrical field so she can carry it?

Someday I’ll get around to writing this story, just like all the other ones. It’s just that certain events have to happen in order for this story to happen.

Oh well. Maybe next (spooky) year?

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intynidad · 4 years ago

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Hi hi!! Could I request the dorm leaders (if that’s too many, your favorites!) with a child MC? (Parental or older sibling sorta relationship) (also by child I mean 8-10 years old) Have a wonderful day, drink some water and eat protein! 💕

@moomoo-mochi OMG THANK YOU??

I love this so much I’m just a sucker for this kind of prompt!!

Also, this will be based on how I acted as a toddler (spoiler I was a stupid kid)

a health potion with risu giggles for a fellow merchant!

(also sorry I didn't know what to write for iidia or vil and I didn't want to write something that I wasn't satisfied

The beginning

-you careless puppy, How many times I told the two of you to be careful!- professor crewel was scolding you and your lab partner...well at your lab partner more than you, you were kinda busy trying to get out of the cauldron to listen

You and your lab partner were assigned to do a regression potion that was supposed to work in reviving dead plants or turning rotten food into edible again but when you were measuring the exact amount of the last ingredient to finish the potion, somebody accidentally pushed you making you spill all of the ingredients...and yourself into the cauldron.

so now there you are extremely confused about what just happened and incapable of taking care of yourself for the 3 days the potion was supposed to last and now your lab partner has to take care of you until the potion wore off or mister crewel finds an antidote

Riddle Rosehearts

Riddle has an abusive mother and no younger siblings so our dear tomato is lost, he doesn’t know any rules that would help him take care of a little child so he asks trey for help (like most of heartsalybul when they have problems).

trey lets you eat pastries while riddle does his dorm leader duties but he looked away for a second and oops no child in sight...ok time to panic.

riddle was scolding some heartsalybul students that spilled all of the red paint in one of the chairs so now not only the other members of the dorm couldn’t continue painting but now the unbirthday party had to cancel and you know what happens when you break one of the queen’s rules

-OFF WITH YOUR- Riddle swung his magic pen

-wead!- riddle turn around to see you with a rose in your hand pretending it to be a magic pen

-off widd your wead!- you repeated swinging the rose up and down

riddle was stroked by your cuteness like a truck; he was speechless (also because picking roses was against the rules but lest ignore it) the two students he was scolding ran away because their dorm leader was picking you up and giggling at your little imitation of him

-nono Off, with, your, head!-

-off wid your wead!-

Leona kingschoolar

-agh how annoying- the savanaclaw dorm leader wasn’t a big fan of children and much less taking care of them, he probably was gonna throw you at Ruggie or jack, both of them had younger siblings so they could probably take care of you better but there is one thing he didn’t count off

-LEONA OJI-TAN-...fuck, today was the day Cheka came to visit his dear oji-tan, now Leona is not only stuck with a brat but with a furball too.

-who are them uncle?-(owo who this) Cheka waved at the child that was behind his uncle’s legs-hi I am Cheka, wanna play tag?!-oh ho ho this gives him an idea

-Cheka this is Y/N, your new playmate-the lion cub had a little sparkle in his eyes

-you two can play all day and ill be watching you from that tree so have fun-hell yea he was a genius Cheka and you are entertained, and he can nap is a win-win situation for everyone

-WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH- and there it goes his perfect plan

-oi, what happened- you were in sitting on the ground while hugging your knee and crying your heart out and Cheka kneeled beside you trying to comfort you

-I’m-I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to push you it was an accident- now he looked like he wanted to cry

-agh you two cut it out-Leona said in a low growl while kneeling beside you-is just a scratch don’t worry just let me-he picked you up.

now all of you were in his room he gently bandages your knee while Cheka was holding your hand for “moral support”

-kiss to make it better Leona oji-tan!-

-only if both of you promise to be more careful-Cheka nodded- ok “pain, pain go away *woshh*, there you go- you moved your knee and started to giggle while Cheka was already dragging you to continue playing, the two of you were lucky that both were cute because not everybody can see this side of Leona and live for telling it

Azul Ashengrotto

-Come, come everyone!-the leader of octaville tapped his fedora-For the price of 25 madol you can have for a limited time only a photo of our dear Y/N as a toddler!-

and of course, our dear capitalist Ursula is taking profit from this situation.

you were sitting in a little chair all dolled up while jade took pictures of you with different students and Floyd was taking the money from dose poor unfortunate souls

An hour passed and there were still about 50+ students in line for a photo when Azul notice something about you.

your hands were in the form of a tiny fist and your eyes were watery and you haven’t smiled at the camera for the last photos even when Floyd made funny faces behind jade you weren’t enjoying this.

usually, he wouldn’t care about it, he was making some good money and that was the important thing but you were different, you were his friend

-the lounge is closed, everyone get out, Floyd take care of that and jade-he looked for a second at you-make something warm for our little guest-

all of the students in line emitted different protest sounds but a look at Floyd grin and everyone was already on the exit

-sorry for all that little one- he lightly patted your hair-what about I pay you for your work with some treats?-

-*happy gasp* YESH!!-you hugged his leg with a strong grip-

-nee~ nee~, why Azul can have a hug from shrimpy and I cant?-

-FWOYD!! :D-

Kalim al asim

-Kalim, please calm down-Jamil said looking like he is gonna pop up a blood vessel

-LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y/N LITTLE Y-he was let’s say...excited about this situation

-JAMILLOOKATTHEMTHEYARESOCUTEANDTINYIWANNATROWAPARTYFORJUSTTHEMOMGTHEYARESOCUTE-

-Remember to breathe Kalim and please calm down you are scaring them-Jamil said while kneeling to be on your level

-*gasp* I’m sorry y/n, I’m just so happy to be with you, are you hungry?-you give a quick nod

for the surprise of Jamil, the fact that you turned into a child made Kalim more independent???

he knew that crewel sensei asked Kalim to take care of you but he kinda assumed he is the one who will end up taking care of both of you.

-emmm Jamil-and here we go-have you seen Y/N around?-

-excuse me whAT??!!- Jamil shouted- HOW DO YOU LOSE A CHILD?-

-I didn’t lose them I just….temporally misplace them...OK YES, I LOST THEM BUT IS NOT MY FAULT WE WERE PLAYING HIDE N SEEK!-

-sure sure Kalim never anything is your fault-Jamil said between teeth-

Kalim could be a literal ray of sunshine but one of his bigs flaws were his “rich person behavior”

because he was spoiled and lived in a bubble he didn’t understand that his actions had consequences, in the good side he was working on it.

two hours had passed since that moment are you were nowhere to be found

now the scarabia duo was starting to panic

-OMG HOW IM SO CARELESS THAT I LOST THEM WHAT IF SOMETHING HAPPENED TO THEM IM THE WORST FRIEND IN THE WORLD-

-KALIM CALM DOWN, PANIC WILL NOT HELP IN THIS SITUATION-

-WHY ARE YOU YELLING AT ME-

-BECAUSE YOU ARE YELLING-

-*snore*-

-..............................-

-Jamil,...did that pillow made a sound?-

-I think so ?-

*SNOOOREEE*

and there you were sleeping under a big mountain of pillows you fell asleep while playing so that, why you didn’t, respond to the calls of the two boys

-ok Kalim we found them and I hope this had taught you a lesson about taking care of things...well taking care of people-

-oh for the great seven I thought I was gonna have a heart attack-

-now you know how I feel and I really would appreciate it if you used this experience to-

-*SNOOOOREEE*-

And now Kalim was sleeping beside you

great seven give Jamil patience and have mercy on both of you when morning comes

Malleus draconia

-arent you a little thing fufufufuf-

-old man be careful with them-silver said

you might be wondering, I thought malleus would take care of toddler Y/N?

Well, that was the plan...malleus is a reserved man, with no friends more than his two guards and the older fae that raised him, that was until he meets you, you looked at him in the eyes with no fear just a hint of curiosity.

you gave him his first nickname,”tsunotaro” a childish name that was almost disrespectful to the heir of the valley of thorns and one of the most powerful wizards of all twisted wonderland, yet you called him that silly name, you hugged him, you listen to him and he listened to you, you were his friend and precisely because that he left you at the care of Lilia, the mere thought of you screaming and running away from him made his heart ache

that always happened…

Malleus is used to that, since he was a child people looked at him with fear or caution but never with kindness except for one person, you

and he was determined to let that like that, but he couldn’t stop thinking what if something happens to you?

what type of friend he would be if he lets somebody take advantage of you in this vulnerable state?

a peek wouldn’t hurt

there you were, in the flower bed of ramshackle dorm both planted, taking dandelions from around and with inexperience and tiny hands crafting a flower crown too small for anyone except you.

he looked at you from the shadows carefully to not being spotted warding you like the dragon he is.

-hewo-small and tired eyes fixed behind a large tree

malleus was behind that tree…

-whats yowr name?-now standing up and slowly walking to the tree in question-are you shy?, is oke I won’t hurt yow-

like if a child could do any damage to him

-I made thwis fow you-you said reveling a second flower crown that was just a little bit bigger than the one in your head

you let the flower crown on the floor near the tree and waited, malleus knowing how stubborn you were he knew you wouldn’t leave so he left his hiding spot thinking about the screams and the fear your little face will have

-waaaa, you big! (giggles)-again, no signs of fear-uppa uppa!-you said while rising your hands to the sky and opening and closing your little fists

malleus emitted a low chuckle and picked you up, when you got to his eye level immediately went for his horns touching and grabbing all your little hands could

-you sure are a strange thing, little child of man-

437 notes · View notes

milolov3nutella · 2 years ago

Text

My Ocs info

ok I make info here so I can pin this. You can ignore this if its in your recommendations.

Cod zombies ocs

Wei Fu Xiu (main) Primis: (20's) Chaotic good /Ultimis: (40's) Lawful good (November 2nd)

• likes spending time with Tak and Tae, has a family of 4.

• Primis: energetic, loyal, always see thing as fun. Kinda immature, loves his family.

• Ultimis: loyal, trustworthy, kinda depressed from his daughter unexpected disappearance. Helped Taeko with the rebellion.

• born into a upper-middle class family. Has a family fan that have spikes. 5'9

• taught to fight by Tak's father.

• the fight-breaker

Taeko Masaki (Takeo's sister) (40's) True Neutral (April 15 / 10 minutes older than Tak)

• Takeo's twin sister. Downright taller than him like 5'11, no one knows why

• loves her brother but still bicker alot with him

• a rebel, while Tak's a patriot.

• has a husband and 2 kids

• looks alot like Tak but female (I cannot imagine)

• loyal, bad temper, loves foods, energetic

Mei Yu Lan (main) Primis: 20's Lawful Good/ Ultimis: 40's Neutral good (9 January)

•They both are loyal, trustworthy and caring. Primis is less merciful and serious while Ultimis is tired but calm.

•work in France to pay for hospital bills

•friends with Kora (my friend's oc) since childhood

•became Xiu's enemy to his spouse

•she like spears, I mean alot

•Ultimis, she is calm, but if she is traumatized by something she won't let it go.

Cod black ops cold war ocs

Andros "Bell" Lenkov (supposedly main, cuz the game let us make him as anyone. But I don't own him.) (40's) Chaotic Neutral (wip)

• loyal, loves cats, trusting (depends),

Height: 5'8

• like the storyline, he is brainwashed by the cia

• (good ending) former kgb, hates the group for lying to him, but forgives them later. Takes a little liking to Adler but still hating him at the same time. Good friends with Sim and Park. Best friends with Hui cause she save him many times and he does the same. Neutral with Woods, Mason and Miles.

• (bad ending) now with Perseus, he is the most loyal agent in the field. Perseus's right hand man. He does miss some of the crew but always returns to the fact that they betrayed him.

Wei Hui Shan (Xiu's granddaughter) (25) Chaotic good (wip 1956)

• Always wants to find her family's friends. Kind of a stalker. 5'6

• loves surprises, join the cia because she believes she can protect her home country, China or Taiwan, depends on the timeline.

• kind, loving, cares alot about her friends, social, airhead. Looks up to Adler, Bell's best friend

Cod modern warfare 2

None yet.

For people that likes history, join countryballs or u just need to draw hands and legs, then join countryhumans (please don't see the cringe side of the fandom)

Countryhumans (past)

None

Countryhumans

None (cuz I threw them away ;-;)

(Overwatch) 2070 (ish)

Giotto "Ombrello" Ranallo (male) (made on 2030s)

•Advanced omnic, former Italian mafia, calm, loves wine (even tho he cant drink it), classy, 5'8, Damage, Sicily Italy, was fixed and hid by Alina.

•Joined Blackwatch before Overwatch

•weapon: a fedora with spikes, gunbrella (sniper).

•wears an armored suit, he disguised himself to hide from getting killed during the omnic war.

Alina "Soceress" Markovich (female) (29)

•Afro-Ukrainian, 5'10, Support, energetic, caring, 5 May 2051, Kyiv Ukraine

• Ukraine's top medic, a patriot, daughter of a deceased surgeon, in love with sorcery, best friend of Giotto.

• weapon: sorcerer's star (a necklace that grants her the healing power), a random pistol for defense, can transform into air and reappear in a few seconds.

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concussed-to-pieces · 4 years ago

Text

The Mettle Of A Man; Part Twenty

Fandom: Fallout (4)

Pairing: Paladin Danse/Female Sole Survivor

Rating: Holy shit M.

AN: Welcome to the end of our tale, everyone! Thank you so much for reading and enjoying over the years. I love you so much and appreciate you more than words can say. Here's to 2021, my friends! Ad Victoriam, and stay safe! Tagging @anonymouscosmos, @culturalrebel, @wrestlingfae, @toxiicpop, @mercy-and-malice, @deepkittycollecto, @nelba, @mechanicalism, @commandershepardshtole, @valkyriejack and @kovu-the-mythical-being. Enjoy!

Part One: ArcJet

Part Two: The Prydwen

Part Three: Orders

Part Four: Finding Brandis

Part Five: Weston Water And Oberland

Part Six: Meeting Preston And Matthew

Part Seven: Radstag And Radstorm

Part Eight: The Return To Sanctuary Hills

Part Nine: Domestic Ruminations

Part Ten: Institutionalized

Part Eleven: Two Weeks, Three Days

Part Twelve: Haylen’s Warning And The Glowing Sea

Part Thirteen: Under Fire

Part Fourteen: Dichotomy

Part Fifteen: The Litany Trial

Part Sixteen: Nice Try

Part Seventeen: Preparations

Part Eighteen: Divide And Conquer

Part Nineteen: Lucky

[!TRIGGER WARNING!: This installment contains holiday celebrations, brief emotional distress and unprotected sex. Stay safe!]

Time seemed to pass both too fast and not fast enough.

Synths were accommodated, reprogrammed at their wishes or helped to adjust to their new lives. Doctor Amari and the rest of the Railroad had no shortage of work, and Desdemona eventually tapped MacCready and Cait to oversee their caravan logistics back to the Capital Wasteland.

"And the people of the Commonwealth slept soundly, for the greatest monster was gone." Nick had remarked, touching the brim of his fedora in a half-salute. The old detective quickly appointed himself as head of first impressions in Diamond City, making certain that no trouble befell any wayward synth that accidentally wandered in. There was still a lot of work to be done to repair the Broken Mask incident, after all.

New settlements sprang up overnight and while there may not have been total harmony, there was the sensation of the whole Commonwealth heaving a sigh of relief. Recruits flocked to the Minutemen and Brotherhood in droves as Piper's Publick Occurrences spread the word of their successful campaign against the Institute.

Commonwealth boogeyman decimated by combination effort: Brotherhood Of Steel and Minutemen join forces to save Boston from bodysnatchers!

Deacon had effortlessly deflected Piper every time she asked for an interview, the mysterious man more than content to keep the Railroad shadowy. The less everyone knew, the less they could tell, and that suited him just fine. "You did real good, Icebox. Helped a lot of people."

Elder Brandis sought approval to establish a permanent outpost at the Boston airport ruins, the former paladin keen to send the Prydwen back to the Capital Wasteland. "Oh the Prydwen's a fine ship, but put me in the field any day!" The airship, once a proud symbol of the Maxson reign, now served little purpose aside from blocking the sun on occasion. Scribes laughed and played in the massive shadow, kicking up dust until the circle where the litany trial had taken place was nothing but a memory.

X6-88 had floundered for several weeks, the courser falling into a depressive slump that not even Curie could rouse him from. Oddly enough, it was Preston who ended up being able to haul him out of the darkness, the lieutenant making a point to visit the courser to drag him from his room for target practice and other low-effort patrol duties. "Sometimes all folks need is a hand, General."

The courser went on to reluctantly take the role of defective defector, working as a consultant to the Minutemen to help ward off any future attacks by desperate coursers or Institute scientists. Preston found his input invaluable, and the duo could often be found in the lieutenant's quarters poring over threadbare maps and trading tactical information. Preston also seemed to have a calming effect on the synth hunter, helping to blunt some of the cold steel edge that X6 had honed his entire life. Add on to that the constant caring presence of Curie, and they made a strange but surprisingly effective trio.

With the new supply line firmly established between the verdant utopia of Starlight Drive-In and Oberland Station, the strain of the prior lean months finally eased a bit. Faces grew less pinched even with the increased burden of the synths, and many settlers began to tentatively plan for a small celebration in the beginning of the winter.

"'The Holidays' is what they been callin' it, real simple and succinct. Some freaky hodgepodge of everyone's traditions. I guess a lot of folks on that fancy director's board also celebrated around this time of year. Not that the synths would know, naturally." Hancock had muttered, his expression sour. "Poor bastards always workin', and they ain't got fuckall to show for it. Seems like a shit deal."

Elder Brandis granted Danse an extended leave of absence after the toppling of the Institute without the paladin even requesting it, the large man dumbfounded for a moment upon receiving the news.

"If you're up for it, I could use a hand back at Sanctuary." Vega had grinned up at him, her eyes squinting a little under the force of her smile. "A lot of prep work goes into a holiday, after all."

...

Danse had taken it upon himself to retreat from Shaun's previous bedroom when he accompanied Vega and her son back to Sanctuary. He debated heavily on returning to the airport; after all, there was no real reason for him to stay in Sanctuary Hills, at least none that he dared to dwell upon. The few small projects that Vega had to manage were easily accomplished and he was left a bit lost in the wake of the excess of his leave.

Vega, however, had begun framing in what was once the carpark for her house. Sturges helped of course, and once Danse caught on he was touched by the gesture.

"I don't want you to feel like there isn't room for you just because Shaun is back." Elizabeth had said, lugging a chunk of scrap metal from the wreckage of her car.

The paladin had to take a moment, claiming sawdust in his eye as the culprit.

Now Danse lived in the area she had partitioned off for him, uncertain if he still believed he was intruding. Those thoughts were troubling, because if he could get comfortable…

What if Vega eventually decided that Shaun needed a father and what if...what if she chose a real man? Really real, not a sham like Danse was. And if she did, what man would permit Danse to stay? What real man would permit a synth that was currently entangled by these...human emotions to remain on their property, even if Danse proved he wasn't a threat?

What man would believe him if he claimed to have no interest in Vega? Hell, Danse didn't even believe himself.

But he didn't want to leave. He wanted to stay. He wanted to tell Elizabeth...well, there were a lot of things he wanted to tell her.

His silence was more of a burden each day, and Danse knew he must seem sullen. It gnawed at him; it felt like lying every time he choked the words back down because it wasn't the right time or he just didn't know what to say, and he didn't trust himself not to say something foolish.

He decided he would wait until after the holiday gathering. Whatever the verdict was, it shouldn't take away from the joy she was clearly feeling over the festivities. So Danse threw himself into helping Sturges, Mama Murphy and the Longs around Sanctuary.

Secretly making a toy truck for Shaun had been a painstaking process fraught with peril. Mainly because Danse was somewhat indelicate and carving tiny wheels had never been his area of expertise. Oh certainly, he could build a survival camp with nothing but a combat knife and time, but a toy...

The paladin had spent countless hours creating prototypes in his cobbled-together room as he pondered the path he should take, sometimes working into the wan light of the morning. He eventually showed the truck to Jun, immensely fearful that Shaun might not enjoy the toy. Danse couldn't recall his own interests when he had been Shaun's age, and thus fell back on the other man's expertise.

"It looks good! Sand the wheels a little more, maybe give it a coat or two of paint." Jun praised the pensive paladin, turning the vehicle over in his hands to examine it. "Kyle loved these kinds of things y'know, trucks and trains and little toy boats." His gaze grew distant for a moment, the rough plaything stilling in his grasp. "Marcy thinks she's pregnant." He said abruptly.

"Pregnant?" Danse repeated without meaning to, his eyebrows shooting up to his hairline.

Jun nodded jerkily. "It's been three months now. She's scared, Mr. Danse, real scared. Thinks something bad will happen."

"What can we do?" The paladin asked sharply.

Jun gawked up at him, seeming confused. "We?"

"I am unfamiliar with this process. What needs to be done?"

"I...I don't follow, Mr. Danse."

"To simplify the duration! What precautions can I-"

"Whoa, hang on." Jun protested. "We aren't sure if the general will even let us stay here with an extra mouth to feed. I've been trying to figure out how to bring up the subject." He admitted.

"You haven't even told General Vega yet?!" Danse squawked.

"W-Well, no! I figured maybe we would...we'd see how the winter went and play it by ear." Jun mumbled, seeming defensive.

Danse seized the other man's arm, heedless of his protests as he hauled him across the front lawn to Vega's abode. Today was the day that Vega had planned to sort through decorations; there were many left over from the fall holiday the Commonwealth had been preparing to celebrate before...well, time had stopped for most when the bombs fell, it was understandable that faded pumpkins and skeletons would still grace crumbling walls with their orangey-cream presence.

Vega looked up from the veritable pile of brittle, salvaged decor in confusion when Danse barged into their...her home, the paladin immediately halting and offering a sharp salute. "Danse! I...uh, what's wrong?"

"Mr. Long has something he needs to discuss with you immediately." Danse informed her, tugging the other man forward.

"I-I...er, General, you…" Jun struggled to speak, twiddling his fingers wildly. "M-Marcy--"

"What's wrong, Jun? Is she okay?" Vega asked, getting to her feet and shooting Danse a worried look. "Did something happen?"

"B-Baby." Jun squeaked. "Pregnant."Backhand went still, her freckles stark against the fresh pallor of her face. "I'm sorry, General, I know we haven't discussed it beforehand a-and I know food's been better as of late...I-I guess she got enough nutrients and got healthy enough for...er, well, you know." Mr. Long looked like he wanted to disappear into the ground. "We should have spoke to you sooner; I don't know if she can leave with the weather being--"

"Wh-Where are you going? Why leave, what?" Vega stammered, "Jun, you can't travel now, if something goes wrong-!"

"We weren't sure if you'd let us stay!" The thin man interrupted her frantically. "This is your base, after all, and you didn't sign on for an extra person to worry about."

Vega inhaled deeply. "Danse, could you give me a minute with Mr. Long?" She requested, her voice suspiciously even.

Danse obeyed, closing the front door gently and meandering a pointed distance down the main thoroughfare so as not to eavesdrop. He had a relatively good idea of how the conversation would go, despite Jun's misgivings. So he wandered down to the huge tree at the end of the cul-de-sac, fiddling with the truck in his pocket absently as he stared upwards at the barren branches.

"Y'know kid," Mama Murphy piped up from her customary chair on her porch and the paladin turned to face her, giving the elderly woman his full attention. "When I had the Sight, I saw this place. Sanctuary." She nodded in the direction of the river, then gestured upwards. "The bridge, and this tree. Massive and old, worn out from all those years." She cocked her head, giving Danse an appraising look. "The tree though, it was...covered in lights. Like what you see in the pre-war mags. The Holidays, shinin' like a beacon of hope at the end of the tunnel."

Danse hummed, the vaguest beginnings of an idea taking root in his mind. He couldn't bring Vega's old life back, but maybe...maybe he could bring something from it back to her. Like what you see in the pre-war mags.

"I think you're pickin' up what I'm puttin' down, kid." Mama Murphy's smile was knowing, the old woman reaching over to pet Dogmeat. The dog seemed to materialize out of thin air sometimes! "Now get to it."

...

Backhand was already scurrying around the kitchen when Danse rose on the morning of the Holiday celebration, the paladin pausing only momentarily to yawn in the doorway before sleepily offering his assistance. "Is there something I can help with, Vega?"

"Uh, Sturges, he said something about you and stuff from Goodneighbor, I think?" Elizabeth replied, obviously preoccupied with whatever she had in the semi-functional oven. Danse nodded, trudging across the kitchen to tug on his boots by the door.

Shaun bounded out of the bathroom, his face still damp from his morning wash. "Oh, can I help too? Please Mom, let me help Mister Danse and Mister Sturges!" He begged.

"You'd better stay right where Danse and Sturges can see you." Backhand instructed him sternly, one oven-mitted hand gesturing to indicate the gravity of the situation. "Otherwise you're coming straight back inside. Go put on your warm coat."

Shaun cheered in delight, racing back to his room.

"It's okay that he's with you two, right? I know he's not your responsibility." Backhand continued in an undertone to the paladin.

Danse's throat tightened and it took him a moment to respond, "I don't mind at all. He's a very well-behaved child."

"Let me know if he's an issue and I'll bring him back inside. I just need to get this done and the oven is being all-"

Danse stood up and placed his hands on her shoulders, deliberately schooling his expression into something more stern. "General, you're doing a fine job. Stop worrying."

"Am I? Shit, I really hope so." Elizabeth mumbled, tipping her forehead until it rested against his chest. Danse prayed she couldn't hear his heart, hammering merely from her proximity. God, his body was nothing but an embarrassment waiting to happen. "I've never really done this crap. Not sure if I'm cut out for it."

The momentary respite was broken when Shaun reappeared in his oversized flannel and oilcloth jacket, the child bolting past the two adults to put on his boots. Danse reluctantly released Backhand, noting how flushed her face was but not really daring to dwell on it. "I'll...I'll watch him." The paladin said, his voice a bit stilted. "I promise."

"Thank you." Backhand mumbled, wiping her eyes and then returning to coddle…whatever it was in the oven.

"Ready, Shaun?" Danse asked the boy, who nodded rapidly and extended a hand.

The snow outside was still fresh from the night before and Danse took a moment to appreciate the view of the Commonwealth covered in a thin layer of white. Off in the distance, the towering crimson insignia of the Red Rocket gasoline station stood stark against the backdrop of the gray sky. Even further down the road slumbered the empty shell of Concord, the tallest of the town's dilapidated buildings only just visible from the paladin's position.

Shaun tugged at his hand, pulling his attention back to the present. "Mister Danse, Mister Sturges is waiting for us!" The child announced, waving up at the engineer who was currently settled into a crook of the brittle branches that graced the tree on the cul-de-sac island. "Hi Mister Sturges!"

"Howdy fellas! Come to give me a helpin' hand?" Sturges called, grinning down at the two of them.

"What assistance can we offer?" Danse queried, wary that the other man might suggest Shaun climb up to him. His fears were quickly allayed when Sturges instead asked Shaun and Danse to begin untangling the long strands of old lights.

Hancock and his ilk had arrived from Goodneighbor, bearing the gifts of dubious treats and many, many mangled strings of lights. Goodneighbor had always been drenched in neon, after all, so Danse had assumed the ghoul mayor would be the best person to call upon for aid. It would appear that Hancock had delivered in spectacular fashion.

"With your help, we'll have this place lookin' pretty as a picture in no time!"

…

Maybe she had bitten off slightly more than she could chew, trying to cook a traditional dinner. Backhand sighed, glumly poking at the cold poultry with a wooden spoon. Her cooking skills had never been much to write home about in the first place, and this only served to solidify that fact.

"Oh Mum, I'm so sorry. The old oven just isn't how it used to be." Codsworth commented, his mechanical voice tinged with melancholy.

"It's not a big deal, Codsworth. I hate to waste the food, that's all." Backhand muttered, assuring herself that she wasn't fighting back frustrated tears, her eyes were just tired. "Damn thing didn't even get to the warm phase."

"Mum, if I might suggest…?" The robot started hesitantly, carrying on when she nodded. "Perhaps it can be salvaged. After all, we make bread in that same pan by tucking it beneath the hot coals out front. What do you say, shall we give it a go?"

"Got nothing to lose, right?"

"It will be just fine, Mum! You're an adaptive sort." Codsworth remarked, drifting out the front door to stoke the usual cooking fire to life once more. "Indeed, just fine!" He called.

Vega shook her head ruefully. "Oh I'm sure." The woman grumbled. "Can't cook and comes with baggage. What a catch ol' Vega is." At least the bread had come out well, in spite of the brisk weather. She could thank whoever for that small favor.

Once Codsworth had coaxed the embers to life in the fire pit, Elizabeth bundled up and brought the still-cold cast-iron pot outside. Maybe it had been wishful thinking to believe that the oven portion of her stove would still work. Or even heat at all. It had been promising earlier in the week, but this might be a blessing in disguise. If the whole house had gone up due to a cooking malfunction...well, the holidays wouldn't be too happy then, would they?

"Please cook." She begged under her breath, troweling hot coals onto the battered dutch oven lid. "I need this, y'know? Just a little victory, that's all I'm asking for here."

"Shall I get started on the tatoes, Miss Vega?"

Elizabeth nodded, only half-listening to Codsworth. She knew she would have a good forty five minutes to an hour to wait, and it wasn't as if it was colder outside than it was inside. The joys of semi-functional heating!

Vega shook her head at herself after a second, since when did she dwell on everything that Sanctuary wasn't? At the end of the day, it was her home. She wouldn't trade it for the world, and she knew she had much more than most people.

At that thought, her gaze wandered to where Danse and Shaun were. The larger man had Shaun on his shoulders while he patiently unwound a massive bundle of flickering string lights. Shaun, for his part, was passing the untangled lights up to Sturges. The engineer slid down the ladder so he could reach the child, looping the lights over his arm before climbing back up and painstakingly placing them in the gnarled grasp of the tree's limbs.

The manufactured cheer that the lights had given off pre-war was still somewhat there, though the radiant colors were washed out to pastel and the warm whites had gone dingy gray. Instead of it being a melancholy reminder that her life had changed irreparably, Backhand was overcome with gratitude. For her son's safe return, regardless of his synthetic makeup, and for the man who was currently carrying Shaun on his shoulders. For her home, for her family.

A family.

Perhaps she was getting a little ahead of herself. After all, Danse was still adjusting to life in ordinary time. It would be selfish of her to voice her feelings to him while he was coming to terms with everything that had happened. For better or for worse, their lives were different now.

It ought to be enough that he was in her life at all. She should be content. His presence alone was a miracle; for all intents and purposes he should be dead. Yet there he was, mere feet away, helping to brighten up the holiday celebration.

Tonight there would be a multitude of visitors. God only knew how many would arrive from settlements near and far, to say nothing of Goodneighbor, Diamond City, the Prydwen and the Castle! It would be an incredibly busy evening for certain. Hancock had arrived early with a posse of ragtag drifters from Goodneighbor, all of them offering gifts of food or scavenged ornaments to decorate. Hence the massive mound of lights that was currently being diligently sorted through.

The aforementioned ghoul appeared to have delegated the task of quality checking the lights, as his form currently leaned against the faded blue siding of her house. With cigarette smoke wafting from his mouth and nasal cavity in equal amounts, he seemed content to just watch the chaos unfold.

"Aren't you a little chilly?" Backhand queried, raising an eyebrow. The mayor was still clad in his usual garb of...for lack of a better term, repurposed period dress. Granted it wasn't seasonably cold out, at least not like how she remembered it being before the bombs dropped.

"Nah, we ghouls run pretty warm. Ham's like a portable space heater." Hancock answered, giving her a lazy grin. "Cute of you to worry, though. I must be growin' on ya'."

"Whoa there, let's not get too crazy."

"Whatcha' think, General?" Sturges shouted from his perch, waving to get her attention.

Danse turned in place, appearing to realize that she was watching as his hands flew up and grabbed Shaun's legs, stabilizing the small boy on his shoulders.

Backhand couldn't keep from smiling when she called back, "it looks wonderful! Keep up the great work!"

"That ain't the only thing that looks wonderful, right Sunshine?" Hancock snickered, rolling his eyes at the now-sputtering woman. "You better give the Brave Little Toaster the ride of his life, that's all I gotta' say."

"Hancock!" Vega hissed, making a half-hearted swipe at the mayor. "You fuckin'--"

"Ah ah, little pitchers!" Hancock scolded, tilting his head to the side to draw Vega's attention to the rapidly-approaching form of Duncan, MacCready's son. "Gotta' watch that mouth of yours, Sunshine."

"This ain't over, ya' raisin-lookin' bastard." Backhand snarled under her breath, pasting on a friendly smile for Duncan while Hancock wheezed with laughter. "Hey bud, how's things?" She greeted the child, who grimaced.

"Dad's kissin' Miss Cait again. S'gross." The little boy announced, wrinkling his nose in disgust.

"That does sound pretty gross." Hancock piped up before Backhand could reply. "But you like seein' your old man happy, right? The lady makes him happy. Simple as that."

"Yeah, I guess. Can I play with Shaun?" Duncan asked Vega, eyes wide as he seemed to take in the tree covered with lights.

"Go ahead, kiddo! Just be careful and stay away from Sturges' ladder." Elizabeth warned, grinning when the little boy took off with a whoop.

Cait and MacCready strode up after a moment, both of them red-faced. MacCready bent double, his hands on his knees. "I'm not built for these bullsh--awful conditions." He panted. "I don't know how the kid does it. He was nearly dead a few months ago and now he's out here kicking the snow in the a--er, butt."

Backhand glanced around, and then snorted. "You call this snow? It's a dusting. Back before-"

"Ah ah, easy now Mumsicle, we ain't got time for yer trip down memory lane." Cait teased. "Work to be done, aye? C'mon then, General, shape up. What you doin' on the ground anyway, all crouched like a mother hen broodin'?"

"I'm cooking." Vega replied tersely.

"Oh aye? Looks like yer shirkin' t' me, love. Codsy can manage that mess, c'mon." Cait seized her elbow, levering her up out of the snowy grass. "Now, what needs doin'?"

...

The day was a whirlwind of arrivals, preparations and well wishers. Elder Brandis even stopped by briefly, taking precious time away from his all-consuming duties to distribute some useful supplies and catch up on the gossip.

The Diamond City trio graced Sanctuary with their presence shortly before noon, Nat scurrying off to play with Duncan and Shaun while Piper made a beeline for Hancock's merry band. Nick was more keen to meander around the outskirts of the groups forming, amber eyes taking in his surroundings.

Preston appeared midafternoon with X6, Curie and the entire O'Brian clan in tow, later than expected but apparently they had stopped to help out a settlement along the way.

The cul-de-sac soon rang with the laughter of the rambunctious children; even little Siusan was permitted to briefly toddle about in the trampled snow under the watchful gaze of Eamon. The weather was chilly but the sun had broken through the clouds throughout the day, sending momentary waves of brilliance across the Commonwealth.

Every table and chair that could be salvaged had been assembled on the old foundation at the end of the cul-de-sac, and it was there that the adults began to gather as the sun set. Metal drums loaded with wood were lit, providing heat and illumination to the many guests of the Commonwealth's first official potluck dinner.

"Or rather," Piper amended, clearing her throat with a touch of self-importance as she tapped her notepad, "the first documented official potluck dinner."

The large tree twinkled and shone in the fast-approaching darkness, the occasional flicker or broken bulb doing little to diminish the cheer it provided. The food was distributed, Backhand's roast chicken disappearing without a hitch. The young woman couldn't help doing a mental dance of victory, delighted that Codsworth's quick thinking had saved that particular endeavor.

Vega found a place to sit somewhere in the middle of one of the many long tables, red from the praise of her companions and the persistent chill in the air. She got even redder when Preston loudly proclaimed a toast, to the General!, her lieutenant tipping his bottle and everyone else following suit.

"I remember when I first met the general, she was half-dead on her feet." Preston began the story, his smile fond. "Sturges couldn't even believe our luck. Hell, none of us could. When freedom called, our general answered!"

Backhand, who had lived the story and knew all the ins and outs, found her attention wandering to Danse while Preston regaled the crowd with his tale. The paladin seemed to be listening closely, his meal forgotten. Deacon even began to thieve bits of chicken and tato out from beneath his nose, the Railroad agent shooting Vega a sly wink over his sunglasses.

Backhand shook her head at the other man's antics, then focused her attention on Preston. "...'Lurk queen, a huge, mean seabug, taken out by landmines! The Castle was ours once again, and we all had General Vega to thank for it." The lieutenant stated firmly. "The one who can get things done in the Commonwealth, the one who gave folks hope when it was in mighty short supply. We uh, we owe you a lot, ma'am." He raised his bottle once more. "To General Vega, leader of the Minutemen!"

"To Elizabeth!" Hancock yelled, echoed by half the damn populace as Vega tried to wave it off, the young woman laughing awkwardly. "To our Sunshine, the hero of the Commonwealth!"

"Synth savior, a regular knight in shining armor." Deacon teased.

"Well done, General Vega." Danse said warmly, "I can't know for certain whether the Brotherhood itself would be proud, but I certainly am." His praise for whatever reason made Vega's blush feel like it would scorch her skin.

Oh she knew damn well why, she was just being willfully oblivious at this point.

"Speech! Speech! Is that not zee norm for zis sort of occasion?" Curie called, the diminutive synth currently sharing X6-88's coat as well as his plate of food. X6 didn't seem to have any reservations about the matter, his arm slung around her shoulders without a care in the world.

Much to Vega's chagrin, the majority appeared to be in favor of such a vocal endeavor. She attempted to laugh off the suggestion to no avail, and finally got to her feet. "Alright, alright, settle down. I'll say a few words if it'll get you all off my damn back." She grumbled, her body thoroughly warm now with a combination of embarrassment and gratitude. "I uh…"

Vega trailed off as she looked out over the ragtag gang of expectant faces staring back at her. So many friends and neighbors, finally getting the chance to breathe. The chance to celebrate the fruits of their labor...it was sobering.

"I can't thank you all enough for...well, for everything that you've done. You all sacrificed so much for this peace, stuff I could never imagine doing even before the bombs dropped." She cleared her throat. "My mentor, Sergeant Shaun Cathan, was a great man, and he often had some very succinct or choice words which I'm not about to repeat in polite company."

"Aw c'mon-!" Zeke began to protest loudly, his voice fading as he noticed the small gaggle of children still gawking at his power armor.

Backhand continued, her jaw set firmly, "but one thing I can say that he told me is this: a leader who permits their pride to impede their decisions is doomed to failure. Pride built the Institute, and that same pride rotted it to the core. Pride built the Brotherhood of Steel, the Minutemen, and we've seen the both of them nearly toppled." Vega clenched her fist. "Pride brought nuclear fire down on Boston, but people hauled themselves outta' the ashes of that fire. Good people, tough people. Folks I knew. Folks I cared for, even if some of 'em did spend a little too much time on the Cape. If pride can do so much effin' harm, I expect simple compassion and decency to do just as much good. Hell, more than that. Humanity's built itself back up after the cluster that was armageddon, and we ain't through yet."

She tipped the jar she had been drinking out of towards the crowd, sternly studying the collection of scavengers, families both new and familiar.

...

"So here's to you, my friends. To all that you've done, and to all that you will do."

Vega's salute was rigid, pre-war. Like her helmet on the table beside her, scraped and covered in faded sigils. The mixture of candlelight and the lights on the tree reflected off the worn lenses of her glasses, shielding her eyes from view. Danse wished desperately that he could see her eyes; more than anything he wished to stand up and flat-out state what she had done for him to every soul there, display his...admiration.

Was that even the right word? Admiration, adoration, affection--

His face was strangely warm all of a sudden. Danse flinched, staring down at his mug of coffee with single-minded intent as the buzz of conversation around him picked back up. His mind raced, pieces falling into place in a nigh-unstoppable rush.

Affection. Like...what he had felt for Cutler? Almost. A little to the left of that. Brighter.

Happier.

Not perfect, nothing could ever be perfect. But...

"Elizabeth Vega?" A male ghoul's voice barely penetrated the paladin's consciousness, his words not really registering until, "Beth, it really is you!" The ghoul exclaimed. "I thought I was crazy! It's me, Beth. It's Nate."

"...Nate?"

Danse's head whipped up so fast his neck popped in warning, the paladin having been only tangentially aware of the conversation happening mere feet away from his position. But at that particular nickname his entire being snapped to attention, eyes darting sidelong from where he had been intently studying his mug of coffee.

The ghoul man that Vega was currently speaking to was an inch or two taller than her, with a single tuft of dark hair that still remained over his left ear. He appeared absolutely delighted, but Vega seemed...wary.

"Beth," Danse heard him say once more, and he watched Backhand visibly tense. "I never thought I would see you again! After the bombs dropped--I mean how the hell did...is that Shaun? God, he got so big!"

"Nate, is there something I can do for you?"

Nate.

Danse's breath caught in his throat and his mouth went dry. Nate? Nate her ex-husband from before the war? Nate, the man who had divorced her once he found out she was pregnant with his child?

Somehow he had managed to survive?

Oh, what an incredibly bitter thing to think! Danse was somewhat startled by his own dark path of reasoning. But it wasn't untrue; his mind railed at the unfairness of it all.

The paladin stood up, his mug of coffee forgotten. He wasn't exactly certain what he was about to do, but he also wasn't going to do nothing. He cast around wildly for a plan as he approached Elizabeth from behind around the table, and Danse latched onto what was probably the least intelligent course of action that he could have conjured up.

"Elizabeth," the paladin called, loud enough to be heard over the general hubbub. She turned and Danse briefly spied a look of intense relief on her face before he enveloped her in his arms. "You appeared cold, figured I could warm you up a bit." He reasoned aloud, smiling benignly over her head at Nate. "Who's this?"

Vega began to introduce him even with her face still comically buried in Danse's chest, "Nate, I'd like you to meet-"

"Paladin Logan Danse, Northeastern chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel." Danse interrupted her smoothly, extending a hand to Nate. "I've heard a great deal about you, Nate. It's a privilege to meet you, and a welcome surprise to see that you endured the radiation."

"Uh, is it? Well I-I guess it is." Nate looked flummoxed and crestfallen all at once, glumly shaking Danse's hand. "I suppose you two are, er..."

"Vega is my partner, yes. For over a year now." Danse replied once the other man had trailed off, his tone saccharine-sweet. He heard Vega gasp against his chest. "She is a truly incredible woman. I'm immensely lucky."

"Yeah, I...yeah. Uh, I have to go...talk to--I'll see you later, Beth." Nate squeaked, sidestepping away from the two of them and making a beeline for the road.

"I can't even believe it." Backhand's voice grated with tangible irritation. "I cannot even fuckin' fathom--I...dammit, why him?!" She seethed into Danse's jacket, clenching her fists on his hips. "Phew, boy, I sort of thought I'd already dealt with all that resentment." The woman admitted unhappily.

"You do things in your own time." Danse replied quietly. "Are you alright?"

Vega went still for a second. Danse felt her unclench her fists, hands going slack on his body. Had he misspoken-?

"In my own time, huh?" Vega muttered, almost like she was thinking out loud. "I...I'll be back in a little while, Danse."

…

I'm not panicking. Definitely not panicking. One hundred percent not panicking, totally fine.

Backhand scurried away from the paladin, trying to hide the tell-tale redness of her face. She needed to find either Mrs. O'Brian or MacCready, fast.

As luck would have it, MacCready found her. The former merc tapped on her shoulder as she bounced up on her tiptoes to search for Mrs. O'Brian. "Hey boss, Shaun wanted me to ask you if he could sleep over with Duncan tonight." The man began after she whirled around to face him.

"Yes." Vega replied, perhaps a little too quick and definitely too enthusiastic. "Mac you're a lifesaver, I was just about to ask-"

"-for me and Cait to watch your kid so you and the tin can can get some alone time?" MacCready smirked, giving her a wink. "Dang General, I don't think I've ever seen you so red! Don't worry, your secret's safe with me."

"Shut up, Mac, you're so exasperating." Backhand jabbed a teasing finger into the center of his chest. "You talk, Mayor, and I'll know." The threat was toothless; the both of them grinned at each other after their fierce staring contest. "Thanks for everything."

"Don't mention it. I figure getting you some Brotherhood...uh, Steel, heh, is a pretty decent way to make up for the fact that I didn't bring you a present." Mac shrugged, fiddling with the bill of his hat. "I have beef with the Capital Brotherhood, but these guys...I mean, they don't seem all bad." He allowed grudgingly, giving Vega a gentle nudge with his shoulder. "Go on."

A bracing shot of whiskey shored up her tenuous spark of confidence and Vega marched back to Danse, the large man now engaged in conversation with X6 while Shaun, Duncan, Bridget, Nat and Matthew swirled around their ankles.

Danse was saying, "--collateral ramifications would be inadvisable, I suggest a soft breach. With adequate preparation-"

"Adequate preparation on your part borders on over-caution." X6 interrupted him dismissively. "However, I will take it into account and speak with Preston on the matter. He seems to share your morality. A pity."

"Play at the unfeeling machine all you want, X6." Danse retorted. "It does you no favors. You have people who care about you now, and you would not have asked for my input if you believed the endeavour would be futile."

"True enough, Paladin." The vaguest hint of a smile tugged at X6's mouth. "You are capable."

"I suppose that is the best that I can hope for."

"Hey, Danse? Can I uh, have a little chat?" Backhand asked, stifling a hysterical giggle when Danse immediately looked guilty. The paladin nodded, bidding X6 farewell and attempting to sidestep around the children who were currently playing tag in an ever-tightening circle. "Not um, here though. Let's go to my house, okay? Shaun, you're all set to stay overnight with Duncan, Mac and Cait, right?"

"Yeah!" Shaun replied breathlessly, pausing in his chase to give his mother a massive grin. "Already brought my blankets over and everything. Mister MacCready said Duncan and I could sleep in their wagon, and that he'd tell us Grognak stories!"

Danse's brow furrowed. "We are leaving the gathering, then?" He asked, looking a bit distressed when Elizabeth nodded. "A moment, please." He turned back to the children, calling for Shaun.

The boy bolted away from the group, skidding in the muddy slush. "Yeah, Mister Danse?" He asked, his impatience plain.

"I, er. I...happy holidays." The paladin mumbled, extracting a small bundle from his jacket pocket and giving it to the child.

"Whoa, for me?!" Shaun practically crowed, tearing through the old newspaper to reveal the gift.

It was a sturdy carved vehicle, its edges sleek and smooth. The wood was coated in shiny green paint, giving the little truck a distinct air of newness in this post-apocalyptic world. Danse swallowed audibly as Shaun stared down at the toy without saying a word.

Backhand closed her eyes, hoping and praying that the kid remembered his manners. She hadn't even known Danse had planned on giving him something. Did he make the truck himself? It was wood, not the usual plastic or aluminum of pre-war children's toys. When had he found the time to make a toy? She suddenly remembered his uncharacteristically wide yawn that morning and her eyes flew open, darting to look at Danse. He had been staying up, hadn't he?

"I love it, Mister Danse!" Shaun interrupted her mental panic with his enthusiastic eruption, smiling wide and bolting forward to hug Danse around the waist. Danse's own relief was evident, the large man patting the child on the back with an awkward chuckle.

Oh Jesus, I'm not going to cry, Vega insisted, taking a deep breath. Nope, won't do it.

"Mom look, look what Mister Danse gave me!" Shaun exclaimed, as if she hadn't been standing right there the whole time.

"It's really cool, right?" Backhand grinned, rumpling his hair and then giving him a kiss on the forehead. "Make sure you wash your face and brush your teeth before bed, okay? I hope you and Duncan have fun. I love you."

"I love you too, Mom, I will. Thank you again, Mister Danse!" Shaun rushed to say, clearly eager to return to his friends.

"Alright, go on." Vega tapped the end of his nose, "go have fun." She watched him scramble through the slush, nearly tripping again. "Jesus, he's a bull in a china shop," she sighed, making Danse snort. "Shall we, Paladin?"

He fell into step beside her, his hands tucked into the pockets of his jacket and his back ramrod straight. He was silent until they were actually in Elizabeth's living room, the young woman barely able to shut the front door before he started babbling, "if I offended you earlier, if I-I overstepped my bounds, I apologize. I just recalled what you had said about the name he used for you and I'm afraid I started moving before I could reconsider-"

"Danse, do you remember how we started all of this?" Vega cut off what promised to be a downright incredible justification, cocking her head to the side. "How we met, and what happened?"

"You came to our aid at the Cambridge police station. Then you carried on assisting me with our mission. You helped acquire the deep range transmitter. You greased my armor." Danse paused, fidgeting. "You...said it was alright if I wanted to kiss you."

“It’s alright if you want to kiss me, you know.” Her smile was gentle. “I wouldn’t mind.”

Vega nodded, smiling once more. "The offer still stands, naturally."

"I...things are different now. I'm different. You still...even now, after everything that you know about me?"

"Of course."

"I didn't want to believe you felt that strongly about our...about us." Danse was smiling, actually smiling! "I'd given up hope a long time ago that I would ever be enough for anyone. I was never...enough. Smart enough, or strong enough or...well, just enough, I suppose." He shrugged, his smile fading. "With what happened between Maxson and I, and previously with Cutler…" The large man trailed off.

Vega took a deep breath, nodding furiously. "I do feel strongly for you. Danse, I know that this is a lot, b-but I...uh, I think I love you." She gestured up and down at the speechless paladin, feeling the heat that bloomed fresh on her cheeks. "Not just the wrapping, y'know, but uh. The whole package. You."

His look of shock and confusion slowly dissolved into something unreadable, and he broke eye contact for a moment to stare down at his boots.

"Uh, it's okay if you don't reciprocate! O-Or even if you can't reciprocate, I'm not going to be offended!" Elizabeth rushed to add, waving her hands nervously. "I know that this is a lot to dump on you all at once, I-I'm sorry. I don't want you feeling pressured to give me an affirmative answer just because you don't want to hurt my feelings or whatever."

"I...I can't say that I haven't thought about it." He admitted softly. "But Shaun, he needs--Vega, I'm not really human."

"Neither is Shaun, but I don't love him any less." Elizabeth replied. "Shaun is my son. For all intents and purposes, he is my real son, Danse."

"It's one thing to overlook it for a child, Vega. But I'm...what if something goes wrong with me? What if there's some sort of fault in my programming, and that's why I'm like this? What if-"

"It's alright if you don't want me, or even if this is too much right now. I know, it's a lot." Vega interrupted him, her heart sinking but determined to make damn sure he didn't feel pressured.

"Christ, that's not what I meant. I just want to make certain you know exactly what it is that you're agreeing to." Danse cut her off, his shoulders rigid like he was bracing for impact.

"I understand, Danse. I've understood for a while now." Elizabeth dared to rest her hand on his arm. "I want to be with you. I know that nothing in this shitshow of a future is guaranteed and I want to have something good in my life before my inevitable demise at the hands of some overconfident mole rat."

Danse nodded stiffly, and then grabbed her by the lapels of her canvas coat. Vega found herself abruptly pinned against the wall, Danse's mouth hungrily seeking her own. "You mean that?" He panted.

The brush of the stubble on his face reminded her of their first kiss in the Cambridge station and drove home the differences between he and Nate for the hundredth time. Nate was always clean-shaven, favored pecks on the cheek and lived saturated with cologne. But Danse was grizzled, earnest, reeking of the outdoors and power armor grease. Nate had been eloquent, while Danse was taciturn or tripped over his words. Nate was cold and calculating, and Danse…

Danse was fiery and raw, more vulnerable now than she could ever recall him being before. His knee nudged against her thigh and without conscious input, Elizabeth parted her legs for it and threw her arms around his neck to try to urge him even closer. "Yes, Danse," she gasped. "Oh, Jesus, yes, fuck-ing shit--"

She ground herself down against his leg, relieved that everything seemed to be functioning normally and somewhat impressed by her body's ability to mount such a rapid response after a two hundred-plus year dry spell!

"Language," Danse rumbled in reply, his hands tugging her heavy coat off of her shoulders. "Too fast?"

"No, hell no!" Backhand protested, "not fast enough."

"Shh," Danse rested his hands on her hips, shoving up her shirt slightly so he could touch bare skin. "I have you, Vega." Vega pushed herself excitedly into his grip, grinding on his thigh and arching her back. The way his breath hitched sent shockwaves to her core; the way he watched her...

"Danse we should...we should-" Vega's voice wavered as Danse laved her throat with tender kisses. "-should--bedroom, bed."

"Yes." The paladin growled, making no move to actually follow the direction. That is, until he hoisted her up to rest on his hips.

Backhand yelped, her thighs gripping his sides tightly. "H-Hey!"

Danse pressed his forehead to her own, brown eyes attempting to read her soul. "Elizabeth…" he sighed, his expression gone hopelessly soft. "I should warn you, if we...if you do this, I...listen, I can be a little--a little wordy, sometimes. If I am speaking too much-"

"Hey, no, you talk as much as you'd like, okay? Doesn't bug me at all." Vega assured him, slightly curious about what this might mean. Wordy?

"Elizabeth, you are everything that I never knew I was looking for." Danse murmured. "When I lost Cutler, I didn't think I deserved to be happy again. I assumed that my failure would continue to darken any future triumph, and when the majority of Gladius was...I feared that I was unfit for my rank. How could anyone have faith in my skills after such a catastrophic loss of life?"

"It's hard being the one making the choices. You have to be able to bear the burden of responsibility and also the burden of guilt." Vega reasoned, sympathizing with his plight.

"You had faith in me, though. You didn't even know me, but you didn't judge me for my inadequacy and you allowed me some damn peace. I'm just sorry you had to go through that abuse at Maxson's whim for my sake." Danse cupped her hand in his own, pressing kisses to her scarred knuckles. "You've already done so much for me, Vega. Let me undo you?" He offered seriously, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"Well, I uh, I-I can't say I've ever been propositioned quite like that!" Backhand stuttered, certain that her flush covered her entire body at this point.

His laughter, heard so rarely, washed over her like a tidal wave. "Forgive me."

"Only if you keep asking me to have sex like that." Vega shifted her hand in his grip, intertwining their fingers. "C'mon, bedroom."

"It's not just that." Danse tried to protest, shaking his head. "I care about you. About your wellbeing. I want to make you happy."

"You do. So happy. I'm so glad that you're here with me still." Vega turned in the doorway of her room when he set her down, seizing Danse by the collar of his worn t-shirt and tugging him into her arms. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, Danse."

"You don't know how much it means to me to hear you say that."

"It's the truth, though!" She insisted.

Danse surged forward, his kisses still rough and demanding as he fought to claim her affection. But she gave it freely, all he could ever want and more.

He stripped her of her shirt and dragged his own off over his head, chuckling at the way she greedily drank in the bare skin he presented. "See something you like, General?"

He was hairier than she was used to, but Backhand decided it suited him. Nate, after all, had been absolutely adamant that body hair was grotesque, and now look at him. He'd likely never have to worry about that again.

Thinking of Nate yet again put a frown on her face and Danse paused, giving her a quizzical look. "Is something amiss?"

"Oh! No, I'm sorry. I was just remembering. Nate was all…" Elizabeth gestured vaguely at Danse's chest. "He shaved everything. I'm not used to all...well, seeing so much."

"Is it off-putting? I assure you it's within the Brotherhood's hygiene guidelines, but if you don't like it I-"

"No, I love it. It's new. I've seen your arms, after all, I knew what I was getting into." Vega teased, grinning to ease his worry. "If you can accept all my stretch marks and leftovers, I can definitely handle your chest pelt."

"I'm planning on doing far more than accepting." Danse cradled her breasts in his palms, the paladin lowering his head to draw his tongue over one of her nipples. "I don't care." He soothed when Elizabeth tried to stammer out something else in regard to her stretch marks. "I don't care. It doesn't make you any less desirable to me, Elizabeth."

Vega squeezed her eyes shut, kissing his forehead as he continued to cautiously rouse her peaks until they were stiff and aching for more. Then his thumbs took over, stroking in slow, firm circles that made her quiver from head to toe. "You...you're really good at that." Elizabeth said faintly.

"I'm pleased you think so." Danse grunted when her fingers found his belt buckle. "It has been a significant amount of time for me as well, I...my excitement may be a bit obvious." He admitted, his smile sheepish.

Vega's breath caught in her throat, her hands trembling as she struggled to draw down the worn zipper of his jeans. The underside of his cock throbbed against her palm when she dared to slip her hand into his briefs, his skin searing and smooth.

Danse huffed out a breath, crumpling a little at her tentative touch. "Elizabeth," he groaned, hiding his face in her neck as he rolled his hips eagerly into her hand.

"Keep saying my name like that." She ordered, laughing when the paladin nodded rapidly into her shoulder. "I love you, Danse."

...

Danse rumbled again, words failing him while Elizabeth's fingers wrapped around his cock. This seemed like a dream, another one of his fantasies brought into being. He couldn't seem to do anything aside from stare down at her hand.

"Hey, Danse?"

He jerked to attention, eyes flying up to meet her own guiltily. "Y-Yes, Vega?" He stuttered.

"Do you...uh, y'know." Backhand fumbled to undo the button on her jeans. "You can, if you'd like." She finished awkwardly.

No sooner had she given him permission than Danse was pulling her hand out of his pants, urging her backwards onto her bed even as he kissed her battered knuckles again. "Yes." He grated out, kneeling to untie her boots so he could get her pants off. "Yes, yes, a thousand times yes."

"A for enthusiasm, big guy." Elizabeth teased, lazily fingercombing his short hair back. Her veneer of composure was shattered when the paladin eased her underwear down her legs, the young woman covering her face as if she was embarrassed. "Listen, just uh, go easy on me. It's been over two hundred years, after all." She reasoned weakly.

Danse swallowed hard. Cutler had always praised his dirty talk, the calculated way he could take apart a person with his words and touch alone. Maxson hadn't appreciated his speech, granted, but perhaps…

"You're saying you don't want me to bury my fingers in you, Elizabeth? You don't want me to open you up, work my way into that beautiful, flushed little cunt of yours?" Danse rasped, two fingers tracing lightly on her pubic mound. Her cesarean scar was faintly visible, and he felt a brief flare of concern before recalling that was indeed where the scar was from.

"Oh, Jesus. Okay." Vega gasped, blue eyes wide in what Danse could only assume was shock. "Keep that up and you won't have to worry about using anything else. Fuck, Danse, have some pity here." She pleaded, burying her hands in her hair.

"Language. Do you deserve my pity? How would you earn it?" The paladin queried, the heel of his hand applying steady pressure to her mound now.

"I can be good, Paladin! I can be really good. So good." Her breathless use of his title had Danse's cock pounding, though he tried not to make it obvious. "Please Danse, please touch me…"

Danse climbed up onto the bed alongside her, gently parting her labia with his fingers. "You'll be good for me, Elizabeth?" He asked, propping himself up with an elbow.

"Yes, please."

She had wonderful manners. Danse grazed her clit and her breath stuttered, the paladin spreading the liberal lubrication that she had already created with deft, slow strokes of his index. "Please, what?"

"P-Please...Danse."

He cautiously eased one finger into her, exhaling raggedly when her hand sought out his cock. "Vega-"

"Shh, let me." Elizabeth hushed him, her smile a little dreamy as Danse crooked his finger and rubbed in just the right spot. "Oh, f-uck, Paladin, you--"

"Language, Vega. Can't have you being a bad example while I'm knuckle deep in your cunt." Danse admonished, groaning when she whimpered. "You're so tight, this could take ages. We'll need to come up with some stretches to cope with this." He teased gruffly, sliding in another finger and spreading her open. "Mm, Elizabeth, you need to relax. Relax." He murmured, latching onto her breast.

He felt her pussy clench down around his fingers and he took a greedy suckle from her breast, making Vega cry out his name, "Danse!" She twitched and writhed under his deft attack, her thighs quivering even as she tried to spread them wider for him. Her hand fell still on his cock, not that Danse minded. It had always been more about his partner, he couldn't care less if nothing was done for him. Watching someone else fall apart because of him...now that was its own reward.

"What do I need to do to get you there, hmm?" Danse taunted playfully, tonguing sloppily over the peak of her breast. "What will it take, Elizabeth?"

She arched her back in response, pressing her breast firmly against his mouth, and Danse gently nibbled on the sensitive area she had offered up. Elizabeth sobbed out, shoving one hand down to her cunt to spread herself even wider for his plundering fingers. "More, Danse! Please please please-" she begged, her moan when he pressed a third finger into her absolutely enough to have Danse hurrying to talk himself down. "Yes, Danse." She was practically growling, her arousal something primal and untamed.

If Danse had his way, it would stay like that forever.

"What is it that you want, Vega?" His inquiry was almost lazy, three fingers stroking in and out with much less resistance now. "Hmm, I wonder if you're wet enough to take me."

"You can't just-" Vega made a noise of dismay. "That's not fair, Danse, that's not fair, you know it's not. Please, please fuck me."

Jesus. Danse almost choked on his own breath, letting his fingers slip out of her cunt. "How do you want me?" His voice broke noticeably. It felt like a lifetime since he had been desired, wanted in such a blatant and strangely pure fashion. She loved him. She wanted him inside her. Wanted him to make love to her. Wanted him.

The speed at which she flung herself up a little higher on the bed made Danse want to laugh, but then she was arching her back and looking over her shoulder at him and he suddenly forgot how to breathe for a moment. "This okay?" She panted, brown hair all tumbled around her face as she took off her glasses and pitched them in the general direction of her bedside table.

Danse nodded hurriedly, kicking his pants off. "If you need me to stop, just grab my hand." He instructed.

"This isn't exactly my first time getting fucked, Danse-"

"Language," the paladin reprimanded her with a chuckle, greedily fondling her rear as he mounted up behind her. "You have such a beautiful form, Vega." He murmured, leaning over to press a kiss between her shoulder blades. "An absolute vision."

"I do have nice tits."

Danse rolled his eyes, slipping his hands down to grope said breasts. She gasped out, rocking back against him as he agreed, "yes you do, that can't be denied. Soft, the perfect size, they fit in my hands so well, and so sensitive." He found himself laughing when she whimpered again. "Don't offer up all your weak spots unless you want them taken advantage of, Vega."

"The only thing I want to take advantage of right now is the raging hard-on I can feel." Elizabeth wriggled and Danse grunted, shuddering. "Pl-ease Danse, please put it in me."

The paladin slipped his cock between her labia, the hot, slick flesh pressing against him mercilessly as he teased her. He suddenly felt her fingers on his cock and then-

"Fuck." The paladin grated out the uncharacteristic curse through his teeth, his fists meeting the bedding on either side of her body as he fought the urge to thrust himself home in one breath.

Elizabeth half-collapsed while he slowly, slowly rutted into her, the woman panting and clawing at the blankets. "Mmmgod, Danse-" she slurred, sighing loudly. "So good, fuck, Danse…"

Danse toyed with her nipples, stupidly snarling "language," as she keened in reply. "I'll take care of you, Elizabeth. Be good for me." He pressed a kiss to her temple, smirking at the way her body quaked when he finally bottomed out in her. "That's it, look at you, taking all of me so well," he praised. "Now, how can I make you come?"

"Fu--Please use your big cock to get me off, oh please Danse!" She begged and Danse fondled her breasts yet again.

"You don't want me to touch you here, just like this?" He asked, stroking over her nipples and lingering to tease the area. "They're so hard, though, begging for my attention."

Backhand made a noise of despair, burying her face in her pillow.

"I think you need me to play with them, don't you? You like when I touch them like this." Danse muttered, thinking out loud and coming to that realization even as the words left his mouth. "What is it about it that you like?"

"S-Sensitive." Vega whimpered, "feels good."

Danse rumbled again, bending over to press his chest to her back so he could whisper in her ear, "does it feel good when I'm inside you, Elizabeth? Can you feel how hard I am for you? Feel how badly I need you?"

Elizabeth gifted him this pitiful sound, canting her hips and clenching down around his cock so tightly it took Danse's breath away. "Yes, I love it. I need you too, Danse." She murmured, shifting back and forth ever so slightly.

"Good. I'm glad." Danse took hold of her hips, seating his cock as deeply as he could in her cunt. Elizabeth whined, burying her face in her pillow again as he slowly began to make love to her.

Paladin Logan Danse, pride of the Brotherhood of Steel, had never been a man who took sex lightly. It was too important. Even after everything that had happened with Maxson, Danse still held to that belief. The display of vulnerability, the offer of power in exchange for pleasurable release, the brief moments of tenderness in an existence that was soul-crushingly difficult…

It was serious. It always was.

Vega's arms gave out and she slumped onto the bed, but Danse followed her down. Covering her with his body, the paladin thrust into her again and again, her soft whimpers and cries of his name music to his ears. "What do you need, sweetheart?" He asked raggedly when she began to squirm and arch back against him. "What can I give you, Elizabeth?"

"Fuck me, Danse!" She pleaded, turning her head to the side so she could see him.

"Language," Danse smiled, kissing her temple again. "But understood, ma'am."

…

For the first time since she'd awoken to an irradiated hellscape, Vega was wholly content to just lay down and be taken care of.

Danse was huge, proportionate to his already overgrown size, and he made the most incredible sounds when she inadvertently squeezed down on him. Groans burring in his chest like some untamed animal; he seemed content to just slowly fuck her into oblivion. Which was honestly more than she thought she would ever get.

Her fantasies, much as she'd believed they were wrong or silly at the time, didn't hold a candle to the reality of having Danse on top of her. She had gotten off more than once to this exact idea, being dominated and pinned by the massive paladin. This was a dream come true.

Elizabeth whined when he bottomed out in her again and just rutted himself back and forth slightly, making her feel every inch of his cock. The underside of his dick throbbed against the spot that made her see stars and then, the bastard, he slid his cock out of her cunt to press the head to her clit for a second. "Turn over for me?" He requested, punctuated by a gentle smack to her ass.

Vega rushed to obey, eager to have him back inside her as quickly as possible. The woman spread her legs wide so Danse could settle in between them and when the paladin did, he shifted upwards to kiss her tenderly.

"I've wanted this for so long." He admitted quietly.

"So have I!" Elizabeth replied in delight, her grin beaming. She was sure she looked like a mess, her hair stuck to her forehead with sweat and her face all flushed. But the way Danse was smiling at her…

She found she didn't really care about her appearance at this point in time.

"I love you." Danse murmured as he slid back inside her.

"I l-love you, Danse." Vega stuttered, the natural curvature of his cock applying steady pressure to her g-spot. "Make me feel so good, fuck."

"Language." He growled, making her laugh and then moan.

"Feels too good, brain can't cope." She gasped, wrapping her arms around his neck and tugging him closer until all he could do was grind down into her in a merciless manner. The motion flung her towards her peak, disconnecting her mouth even further from her brain and making her ramble into his ear, "God, I love you so much, make me feel so good--"

"I love you too, Elizabeth." He panted into the hollow of her throat, "you feel incredible. Outstanding."

Elizabeth wasn't sure how she could feel both so aroused she thought she might die and so annoyed that she wanted to explode. "Danse, did you just call my pussy outstanding?"

"It's not an incorrect statement, from my perspective. It's perfect. Wet and tight and hot." The paladin praised her freely, a hand lowering to apply gentle pressure over the scar on her lower stomach. "Beautiful."

I am not going to cry, Vega told herself sternly as she hid her face in Danse's neck. Definitely not going to cry, not going to.

A sob somehow escaped her as she came and Danse froze, his whole body flinching when her cunt clenched down on his dick. "V...Vega?" He asked tentatively.

"I'm fine! I'm fine, I promise, m'not hurt or anything. My brain is just dumb." Elizabeth hiccupped, rubbing her eyes. "I'm okay, Danse, I'm fine."

The paladin seemed uncertain and she couldn't blame him, she didn't seem fine even if she felt a thousand times better than she had in literal months.

"I swear I'm okay, that was just...it was really intense, y'know?" She mumbled awkwardly, unable to make eye contact anymore.

She felt Danse shift his weight and then he settled down on top of her, holding her close and tight. "You're sure?" He murmured, "if you're overwhelmed, that's entirely acceptable. I'm not hurting you, am I?"

"No, shit no, you feel incredible. I'm not going to be able to walk after this." Vega huffed, giggling a little when he rolled his eyes. "Keep going, okay? It feels fantastic."

"If you're certain." Danse acquiesced, kissing a hot trail down her neck when she nodded. "Let me know if you need me to stop."

Watching his forearms cord with muscle as he propped himself back up again, Vega's mouth went dry. "I have to say, this might be the best night of my life."

Danse pressed a sweet kiss to her forehead, the tenderness of the action a wonderful contrast to the needy way he sheathed his cock in her body once more. "I've thought about this." He confessed again, punctuated by a roll of his hips. "What you'd sound like, look like beneath me. You put my imagination to shame."

"What did I do in your dreams?" Backhand asked, unable to keep from breathlessly laughing when Danse hid his face in her neck. "So shy, Paladin! Even with that huge cock in me?"

"It's lewd, Elizabeth, I-I'm not proud of it." He mumbled. "Shouldn't have thought of you that way." He spread her legs wider, one hand on the back of each knee to urge her to bend.

"Mm, you thought about fucking me? Nice to know I'm not the only one with dirty thoughts."

"I did not." He protested staunchly. His cock slid back and forth between her pussy lips in a purposeful teasing motion. "I thought about how...I thought about how good it would feel to make love to you." He continued, his voice wavering slightly as his dick brushed her entrance and he plunged deep yet again. "Thought about how good I could make you feel."

Now it was Vega's turn to be shy, the woman looking away from him and flushing.

"It was still inappropriate at the...time, but I assure you it was never about that. I am not-" Danse struggled for a moment to find the words, before he sighed and rested his forehead against her own. "This already isn't simple, and I know I make it miles less so. Forgive me."

"I feel like it's pretty simple." Vega gasped, twitching as his fingers landed on her clit. "I f--fuck, Danse--I feel like it's real simple. You like me. Love me, yeah?"

"It's more than that, dammit." Danse growled, rubbing her clit in merciless circles. "What you did for me...how can I ever be worth your affection? Hell, your time?"

Elizabeth threw her head back, arching her entire body up into his chest. "Whatever good I give to you," she moaned, almost exasperated that they were even having this discussion, "you deserve it. Take it."

Danse's hands latched down on her hips, thumbs stroking back and forth over her pronounced stretch marks as he fucked into her so fiercely that Vega swore she saw stars. His pelvis ground against her own, body hair providing a delicious new sensation that had Vega grasping at the blankets in an effort to keep herself grounded. "I'm going to come, Elizabeth." Danse panted. "Where do you-"

"Inside." Backhand implored him, "come inside me, Paladin, please come inside me-" Her voice broke as she begged and Danse groaned loud, the sound incredulous.

"You...inside? Are you sure?" He asked through gritted teeth, dark brown eyes conveying his uncertainty. In reply, Vega dug the heels of her feet in beneath his rear, effectively locking him in place.

She caught a handful of his hair, gently tugging it until he leaned down again so she could seethe in his ear, "yes."

"Oh, dammit." With that wonderfully characteristic swear, Danse shoved his mouth against hers gracelessly. The heat in her belly spilled over from the onslaught of his enthusiastic thrusts and Backhand cried out, fingernails digging into his back when she came a second time.

Danse, either spurred on by her sounds or by the way her pussy gripped his dick (maybe a combination? Backhand mused) found his release seconds after, his voice breaking and dropping into a lower tone as he moaned her name. Her real name.

Elizabeth.

Vega cupped the nape of his neck, guiding his face into the hollow of her shoulder. "Lay down, sweetheart, you're shaking." She murmured, stroking over his quivering back.

"Don't want to flatten you." Danse rasped, his dick still throbbing inside her.

"Lay down. It's okay." Elizabeth flexed her bicep. "I'm strong, I can handle it." Danse laughed wearily, almost immediately going limp on top of her. She wrapped her arms back around him, fingers digging into the knots that she found to ease out the tension. "There, isn't that better?"

"Mmmmuch." Danse slurred into her neck, sounding exhausted. "Love you."

"I love you. Sleep, okay? We'll get cleaned up later. Right now though you seem like you could use a nap."

Danse nodded, the tangled mess of his hair mashed flat against her cheek in the process. "Want...to be a good parent." He mumbled several minutes later, just as Vega had thought he was dozing off. Danse propped himself up with one arm, cradling Vega's cheek in his palm. His thumb absently traced the cryo burn marks from the stasis as he continued, "a true partner for you. I don't know if you...if you even want me in that capacity, I--I don't know whether you would prefer that Shaun thinks of me as simply your friend, but I-"

"Danse," Elizabeth interrupted him sternly, raising an eyebrow. "Someone who's simply a friend wouldn't be balls deep in me."

Danse sputtered, his blush spreading down his neck to his chest. Despite his proclivity for dirty talk in the moment, he was endearingly embarrassed by her blunt words. Vega felt her heart pound as he floundered to collect himself, the large man looking away.

He's really nothing at all like Nate.

"Danse." Her voice was gentler this time, unmistakable affection bleeding through. "I would have to ask Shaun, of course, and I'd like to have an adjustment period before I do so that he can get comfortable with the idea on his own, but…" The young woman swallowed hard. Why was she so nervous all of a sudden? Oh sure, she could handle the vulnerability of being naked and fucked with absolute abandon but this? This was where her brain drew the line? Unbelievable, Backhand grumbled at herself. "I think the odds are in your favor." She concluded with a grin.

"You...even though I'm not-?"

"He's probably the last person to care about that kinda' stuff, Danse. C'mon." Vega chided, running her fingers through his sweaty hair. "Now. We are...absolutely disgusting. We need a bath big time."

"I...you're right, of course." Danse agreed absently, still seeming shocked at the whole scenario. "I should...w-we should bathe. Er, at the same time. To save water." He didn't meet her eyes, his attention focused somewhere by her left shoulder.

Elizabeth laughed, bumping their foreheads together before carefully scooting up the bed. His cock slipped out of her and she couldn't help her sigh, the noise echoed by the paladin who tilted his chin to catch her with a kiss.

"You are amazing." He breathed when they parted, his smile small but sincere. "I'm...I'll be hard-pressed to keep my hands off you, Elizabeth."

"Why bother?" Vega asked, chuckling as he ducked back in for another kiss.

...

Hours later, Danse laid awake while Elizabeth slept peacefully on his chest. The paladin stared up at the ceiling, his mind running rampant.

The future.

He hadn't really dared to think about it since discovering his true identity. Hadn't felt like it was something he deserved. After all, if he was just a machine, it hardly mattered. But Elizabeth…

She thought it mattered. She wanted him. Wanted him to stay with her. Wanted him to act as a father. Pending Shaun's approval, of course.

It was surreal how much his life had changed, how far they had come in such a short amount of time. Danse was a little overwhelmed by it all, if he was being honest. Scared, yet hopeful at the same time. And, he thought as he wrapped his arm around Elizabeth, incredibly, immensely grateful.

This new world was unforgiving, the universe coldly testing the mettle of a man time and again. But Danse had finally come out the other side, and he liked to think he had changed for the better.

Whatever the future held, they would face it together.

Ad Victoriam, General Vega. Thank you for having faith in me.

#fallout 4 #fallout four #paladin danse #paladin danse x sole survivor #paladin danse/sole survivor #paladin danse imagine #fallout fandom #fallout fanfic #slow burn #Eventual romance #The Happy Ending #that's right #paladin danse x f!sole #fo4 companions imagine #fo4 companions #epilogue #the gang's all here

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raven-at-the-writing-desk · 4 years ago

Text

Octa A-kun’s Heart-Thumping Day!

For the 1200+ follower milestone, here is the next part of the cursed raven’s story!

Part 1 l Part 2 l Part 3 l Part 4 l Part 5

Today’s tale involves Octavinelle A-kun in a pinch...?! Fight on, Octa A-kun...! You can do it, Octa A-kun...!!

My name is Kon...! I’m just your average, everyday Octavinelle student. I tend to blend into the background, so a lot of my classmates call me Octa A-kun.

I’d say that my favorite food is salted fish, and I happen to like whatever seems to be popular these days. I have the window seat in my home room. Most of the time, I just go with the flow, but I like to keep my head low and stay out of trouble!

All I really want is a quiet, peaceful life!

...So—you may ask—how, then, did I find myself in this pinch?

An arrow whizzes at Octa A-kun’s head, tearing off his fedora and pinning it to the wall behind him. It just narrowly grazes his hair, ripping off a deep green strand with a sharp jolt. Octa A-kun squeaks in terror and collapses onto his rear end.

“Pardon moi, Monsieur Kelp,” comes the light-hearted chirp of his assailant. A young man in a bob cut steps forth, a bow in his hands and a quiver strapped to his back. The billowy white feather tucked in his hat bounces with each stride. “I was in need of some early morning target practice.”

Third year and Pomefiore vice-dorm leader, Rook Hunt, according to the rumors. Be wary of him--once he fixates on something, he will not relent.

“A-Ahahaha...I-It’s fine, senpai!” Octa A-kun stutters, scrambling back onto his feet. He glances at his poor hat, skewered clean through--he’d have to file a request for a replacement later. Azul would charge a fee for it--with interest.

“Ah, how merciful you are, Monsieur Kelp~” Rook laughs as he approaches, each step in his boots the resounding thump-thump of a predator on the prowl.

Octa A-kun shrinks against the wall. “U-Um...! Do you need something from me, senpai...?!”

“Hohoh. How perceptive of you.” Rook plucks his arrow--and Octa A-kun’s hat--and holds his weapon up in the sunlight, his green eyes focusing on the gleam of the arrow’s dagger-like tip. “I’ve merely come for a query, my friend! No need to make such a frightened face.”

“Just a question i-is fine. But it has to be a quick one...! I have to meet up with my partner for a project...”

“But of course. I will not keep you for long.” He tucks the arrow back into his quiver and replaces Octa A-kun’s hat upon his head. “Be honest with me--that is all that I ask of you.”

Rook maintains the curve to his lips as he brings his face closer to his prey. His smile darkens, and the glimmer in his eyes fades into something far more cruel.

“...You would not happen to have been sent by one Roi de Fort, have you? To, perhaps, spy on a little black bird?”

Octa A-kun pales. Sweat collects on his forehead. A lump forms in his throat.

“I-I DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT...!!” he blurts out.

Unconvincingly.

Rook’s eyes narrow. “I have requested for you to speak naught but the truth, have I not?”

He reaches out and takes ahold of Octa A-kun’s collar, pulling him close--so close that the poor boy can make out his own fear-stricken expression in the green of Rook’s eyes.

The hunter still smiles, his teeth a stark, blinding white.

He’s beautiful, Octa A-kun realizes. Beautiful, but deadly.

“Y-You’re being r-really scary, senpai...! P-Please don’t bully me...!”

“La vérité, Monsieur Kelp?”

A drop of sweat races down Octa A-kun’s profile. Pupils dilated, breath hitching, body trembling.

In the distance, a bell tolls--granting him an opportunity to escape.

“Would you look at the time...!! I...I really gotta go now!! M-My project partner’s waiting for me, ahahaha...!! E-Excuse me!” Octa A-kun shouts shaking from Rook’s grip and sidestepping the hunter.

He begins to speed walk away, hands balled into fists and arms swinging stiffly, when Rook calls out to him.

“...Monsieur Kelp.”

Against his better judgement, Octa A-kun dares to glance back.

Rook is staring right at him, his gaze piercing.

“Know this: if you betray her, there will be more for you to worry about than damaged articles of clothing.”

And with that remark, Rook allows his prey to retreat.

But he watches every step of the way.

Until Octa A-kun is nothing more than a dot in the distance.

“Welcome to my roost,” Raven declares with the wave of her hand. “Ignore the mess, and make yourself at home.”

“D-Don’t mind if I do,” Octa A-kun says, carefully ducking into the attic space.

Mess is a bit of an understatement. Raven’s room is piled high with tomes, loose papers scattered on the floor and smears of ink all over.

Tucked away in a corner appears to be a mattress, with a blanket in a nest-like shape, a pillow laid in the center. A bookshelf overflows with volumes on ancient curses, while a strange teardrop shaped seat, decorated with ribbons and wisteria, hangs by a window.

Set upon a large desk is a snuffed out candle, a quill set with a magic gemstone, and several empty bottles and blank labels. A basket spills out its contents--herbs, flowers, and fungi--next to a mortar and pestle.

What really catches Octa A-kun’s attention, however, is the strange collection of glass apparatuses and tubes that line the desk. A small flame dances under the rounded part of a flask, heating up a rose-gold concoction.

“Looks like you keep pretty busy, huh?”

“You could say that. I like to remain productive.”

Octa A-kun offers a timid smile. “Um, if I may ask, what is it that you’ve got brewing at your desk...? I-I’ve never seen anything quite like it.”

Raven pauses.

“...Do you know that feeling of rediscovering a part of yourself you thought you had once lost? Or the rose-tinted glasses which clouds one’s vision? The wonderfulness of meeting an old friend? Think of those things, set in the color of dawn, beckoning a new day.”

“E-Eh?” Octa A-kun combs his brain for a response. “Uh...you mean nostalgia?”

“Precisely. This is my latest creation--Nostalgia. It took me two whole weeks to get this new ink color just right, but it shall be lovely to write with.” Raven puffs up a bit with pride. “Oh, but enough about my personal projects. We need to work on that Magic History assignment, yes?”

“Y-Yes. That report on Unique Magic Development...” Octa A-kun’s eyes follow Raven’s hand as it trails over a series of books on a shelf.

Hexes, and How to Break Them. True Love’s Kiss: Panacea or Poison? Ancient Curses: A Collection of Anecdotes. Journal of Magic Medicine, Issue 32: Jinx Edition.

“Ah, here it is.” Raven fishes out a maroon book with a few sticky notes jutting out of it--Unique Magic: Nature & Nurture--and hands it to Octa A-kun, along with a spare quill, an inkwell, and a fresh sheet of paper.

She gestures toward the seat adorned with wisteria. “Have a seat and work on your half of the report. I’ll be working on my half at my desk after I clean up. We can compare our halves and edit as is necessary when both parts are complete.”

He complies, sitting where he is directed and flipping open Unique Magic: Nature & Nurture.

Two sticky notes immediately pop out at him. One sports a list of various unrelated words (Nostalgia, Sorrow, Regret, and an L word that appears to have been blotted out, left illegible).

The other sticky note has a little diagram labelled Unique Magic, a heart in the center with arrows pointing outward. Needs faith, trust, and a little pixie dust, one arrow remarks. Infusion of feelings requires experience, says another. Practice with Nostalgia, a third states.

Octa A-kun slowly lifts his eyes from the page--carefully watching Raven tidying up her desk.

With the flick of her magical pen--or quill, rather--she extinguishes the flame beneath her flask and sets it into a test tube rack to cool. Raven collects her plants into a basket and tucks them under the desk, along with the rest of her glassware. Then she gathers stray papers and pops open her drawer to stow them away--

And that’s when Octa A-kun catches a glimpse of it.

An unopened letter, in a pale blue envelope.

To My Dearest Raven scrawled across it.

“...And that is the g-gist of it,” Octa A-kun concludes his report, “dorm leader.”

“Excellent work, Kon-san. You efforts are greatly appreciated.” From behind his ornate office desk, Azul clasps his hands together and beams. “I suppose there is no longer any need for Floyd to pay your friends in Pomefiore and Scarabia a little visit.”

“Boooo,” Floyd groans from beside him.

“Th-Thank you for your kindness, dorm leader!” Octa A-kun gushes--if only to (poorly) mask his own fears. He wants to sink into the couch cushions and disappear like sea foam. “B-But...But if I can make a request, sir!”

“What is it?” Azul sounds mildly annoyed, but Octa A-kun steels his courage and persists.

“Um...i-if possible, can you assign s-someone else to check on Miss Raven? I-I’m scared of what Rook-senpai will do to me if I make the wrong mo--EEP!!”

Before he has even finished his sentence, Floyd is flying at him like a shark tearing through water.

WHAM!

Octa A-kun screams as Floyd’s foot connects with the couch, boxing him in and nearly knocking the furniture over. Azul’s glasses flash a pure white, and he makes no move to restrain the feral eel.

“What was that, Konbu-chan?” Floyd asks--no, demands--as he leers down at him. Teeth gnashing. “Did I hear you right? Umineko-kun got in the way?”

“E-Eeeep! Ch-Chill out, Floyd-senpai! You’re...you’re scaring me!!” Octa A-kun whimpers, his poor heart pounding out of his chest.

“Speak freely, Kon-san,” Azul prompts, waving a gloved hand to silence Floyd--but his tone is just as icy and cruel as the eel’s eyes. “What is this I hear about...interference?”

“W-Well...h-he seemed to know that you sent me. And he said he might...do things if I make a misstep.” Octa A-kun furiously shakes his head. “I’ll need a replacement hat after th-that encounter...I-I’m sorry, dorm leader, but I r-really don’t want to be involved in this any more than I have to...!”

Azul leans back in his chair, and his face settles into a serious expression.

“Uwaaah, Jade wasn’t kiddin’ when he said Umineko-kun was guarding Black Pearly like a shark on sunken treasure,” Floyd flicks his tongue along his teeth, which gleam dangerously under the lights of the VIP room. “Even the low level lackies get chewed up and spat out, ehehehe~”

“This is not funny, Floyd. This just makes things that much more difficult,” Azul snaps, pushing his glasses up.

“It’s fine, it’s fiiine,” Floyd insists dismissively with a giggle. “I’ll just follow Konbu-chan--and if that creep Umineko-kun gets close, I’ll beat’em bloody~”

“I-Isn’t that a bit extreme?!” Octa A-kun protests, only to earn a withering glare from Floyd.

“Shut your trap, guppy. No one asked for your opinion,” Floyd hisses--then his expression brightens considerably when he addresses his dorm leader. “Ne, ne, Azul! Can I, can I?”

“Absolutely not. We still need to collect more information before taking such drastic action,” Azul says, his voice tinged with irrtation. “Might I remind you, Floyd, that Octavinelle is, once again, in poor standing with the headmaster? It would not do to further tarnish our reputation with another incidence report.”

“Laaaame~” Floyd pouts, backing away from Oct A-kun. “I’m not allowed to do anything fun anymore.”

“As I was saying,” Azul continues, ignoring the eel, “thank you for bringing this to my attention, Kon-san. Your work here is done--you are relieved from your duties until further notice. Dismissed.”

“Y-Yessir!! Th-Thank you so much, sir!” Octa A-kun breathes a massive sigh of relief. He is quick to gather his coat and hat, then bow to his senpais and hurriedly exit.

Azul pinches the bridge of his nose. “...This will become a problem if it persists.”

“I don’t get it, Azul!” Floyd whines loudly, slamming his hands on his dorm leader’s desk. “Why don’t we just kidnap Black Pearly already and make her ‘n Jade ‘fess up? That’d be sooo much easier than dancing around Umineko-kun!��

“That is not how proper reconciliation works, Floyd,” Azul points out. “If we are to fix this mess, then we cannot hope to resolve it overnight.”

He thinks of the details Octa A-kun had divulged--the countless books that litter Raven’s abode, the fixation on work, the strangely named ink, the interest in curses...Surely they must all mean something.

He pauses, before adding, “...I feel as though I am missing a vital piece of the puzzle.”

“Ehhhh? What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Call it...octopus’s intuition. There is something bigger at play here, something far more powerful than you or I can comprehend.” Azul folds his arms. “And if we intend to bring back Miss Raven into Jade’s arms, then that is one puzzle piece we must find.”

“Hmmm.” Floyd leans down, peering into Azul’s solemn face--then breaks out into a toothy grin. “Ne, ne, you really care a lot about Jade, don’t you?”

“Hmph. Don’t be ridiculous,” Azul snaps, lips pursing into a straight line. “This is merely a case of an employer fretting over the well being of his employee. Jade cannot perform at his best if he is emotionally distressed. I am simply doing my due diligence as his employer to ensure that he is content--it benefits the business.”

“Ehehehe~ In the end, Azul’s heart is juuust as squishy and soft as his octopus form~” The eel wraps his arms around Azul, squeezing the dorm leader against his chest. “That’s sooo cute~”

“FLOYD, DO NOT PRESUME TO KNOW MY INTENTIONS...!! AND UNHAND ME THIS INSTANT!”

“Nope! Don’t wanna~”

Octa A-kun is halfway down the corridor when a hand clamps down--hard--onto his shoulder. The student squeaks in terror as he is whipped around--and comes face-to-face with his smiling vice-dorm leader.

“Good evening, Kon-san,” Jade says nonchalantly, his tone light but his aura dark. “Might I have a moment with you?”

For the third time that day. Octa A-kun’s stomach sinks--but he lacks both the strength and the willpower to resist.

“S-Sure...Wh-What is it?”

Jade cranes his head down, his single golden eye glowing despite his sinister shadow. “I have received word that you have been snooping around campus. Naughty, naughty Kon-san. You should know better.”

Octa A-kun instinctively takes a step back, putting some distance between him and his vice-dorm leader--the information broker of Octavinelle. No secret can evade him, it seems.

“Th-The dorm leader asked me to...!” he confesses, cheeks turning pink in embarrassment.

“Please, be at ease. I do not bite,” Jade says smoothly, chuckling into his glove. “Now then, my sources tell me that you happened upon Miss Raven’s quarters. Is this correct?”

“Y-Yes...”

“Then let me ask this of you--did you, by chance, see a blue envelope?”

“Blue envelope...” Octa A-kun’s eyes light up in realization. “A-Ah, I do seem to recall seeing something like that. She...She keeps it in a drawer. It was unopened.”

“Unopened...?” Jade repeats the word carefully, as though handling a delicate artifact. He brings a hand to his chin in contemplation, his brows furrowing. “It is no wonder why she continues to behave in such a vehement manner,” he mumbles under his breath.

“Um...vice-dorm leader? Is everything alright?” Octa A-kun asks nervously.

“...No. It is nothing, I assure you.” Jade composes himself, smiling once more--this time, without a hint of darkness to it. “Think nothing of it, dear Kon-san. Please, do retire for the night--that was all I wished to know, fufu.”

“O-Of course, vice-dorm leader...”

Jade sees him off with a polite wave.

Octa A-kun waits until Jade is completely out of sight before he collapses into a heap on the ground. He clutches onto his stomach, which twists and knots with fright, and sniffles softly to himself.

Why, oh, why was he not sorted into a normal dorm with normal non-scary students and normal, healthy relationships with their peers? No, instead he’s trapped in the mermaid mafia and witnessing Overblot incidents every single month.

Go to Night Raven College, they said. It’d be fun, they said. You’ll get a great education, they said.

J-Just...Just give me a quiet, peaceful life already...!!

#Floyd Leech #Azul Ashengrotto #twst #twisted wonderland #disney twisted wonderland #Rook Hunt #Jade Leech #Raven Crowley #angst #this installment was hard to pace #Octavinelle A-kun #Tale of the Cursed Raven #twst oc #twisted wonderland oc #enchanted inks

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