#my poor dash is chaos

[classico-fazbear]

// Something tells me I need to hunker down and get into RUIN-

[fastfists]

Once more Chaos is being censored from dash, rude

[endless-ineffabilities]

my man of the year

Ewan Mitchell x girlfriend!reader

a/n: just a little something for the Ewan girlies, because in this GQ party, we are all fam 💙

main masterlist

You attend the GQ Men of the Year 2024 party with your boyfriend.

You watch in admiration as Davey makes the final tweaks to Ewan's outfit for the event—a suit tailored to perfection, its velvet material snug against his lean form. A classic piece, but sporting some eccentricities that have become essential in the Mitchell-Sutton style partnership.

The velvet suit, not in the usual black or blue, also has a textured high notch and lapels, making him look like some kind of an 80s-flick vampire.

Your gaze sweeps from his polished shoes up to his face, finding that he's watching you in the reflection as he stands in front of the mirror.

He tries turning around to see you better, causing Davey's hand to fall from his shoulder as he was pinning something in place. "Ewan, mate. Save the ogling for later, yeah? Let me finish this first."

Ewan sighs dramatically, like a kid who's been asked to stand in the corner. "Okay."

You giggle softly, shaking your head at the scene. "Ewan, listen to Davey now."

You share a look with Davey, knowing smiles on your lips. Ewan, am I right?

"I just want to look at my girlfriend," Ewan complains.

"Look at me?" you question. "Look at you, handsome! You're my man of the year, every damn year."

"C'mere, babe."

"Ewan, don't move until Davey—."

"I won't move. But come here and give me a kiss."

"Fine." You get up from your comfortable position on the seat. Might as well oblige your boyfriend, the GQ honouree. Just the thought of it makes you so giddy with pride.

Rising onto your tiptoes, you rest your chin gently on his shoulder, batting your eyelashes as he leans his head against yours.

"There's my girl," he purrs, wrapping his free arm around your waist and Davey works on the sleeve on the other.

Then he kisses you, mindful to stay perfectly still. Only his lips move, pillowy as they caress yours. You would have to reapply your lipstick after this.

When he cheekily snakes his tongue out, you pull back, giving him an incredulous shake of your head. "Stand down, handsome."

"Oh, don't worry about me, sweetheart," Davey reassures you. "Maybe we should let Ewan have his way. Poor guy looks like he's about to explode."

You all share a laugh.

A minute later, he's all ready. Davey snaps photos of him alone, then shifts to capture the two of you together. He even manages a few that feel like classic prom poses, with Ewan's arms around you from behind.

The rest of the night is a blur of lights and glamour, and the warmth of Ewan's hand on your back quells your nerves as you step onto the red carpet.

The cameras are everywhere, a sea of flashes and shouting for you to, look here, look here!

Ewan keeps you close the entire time, steering you through it all. You can feel that he's anxious too but he's a steady presence by your side. He used to need a crutch like cigarettes or gum to deal with the chaos of such public events, but when you're with him, the noise is silenced.

It's just you and him against the world.

When his arm tightens around you, you jokingly remark, "Didn't peg you for the clingy type, babe."

He glances down, a mischievous sparkle in his eyes. "Just making sure you don't run off with some other dashing celebrity."

An idea pops up in your head. He makes it all too easy. You let out a shaky gasp, "Wait, is that Pedro Pascal over there?"

"Where?" he asks sharply, distracted.

"By the big GQ sign. Don't make it obvious, though!" you whisper, as if you're entirely serious.

He squints, scanning the sea of people coming through the red carpet, until he realizes… there's no Pedro. Not yet, at least.

He turns to you with a playful glare, his mouth twitching with the hint of a smile. "You think you're funny, don't you, baby?"

You give your best wide-eyed, innocent look. "Who, me?"

"You're asking for it," he whispers close to your ear so the cameras don't catch it.

You only laugh as he pulls you closer, giving your waist another possessive squeeze.

"And what exactly are you gonna do about it?" you ask.

"Guess you'll have to find out after we're done here."

When he kisses you, you both know that the resulting pictures are going to flood the gossip sites, fan pages, and everything in between as soon as the next day. But neither of you care.

He makes sure that there's no mistaking who he came with that night.

And you would never tire of showing everyone just who your boyfriend is. You could scream it from the rooftops.

He doesn't need GQ to tell him he's one of the honourees of the year.

All he needs is you by his side to feel like he's truly won.

[benjinotes]

𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐚𝐲 - jacaerys velaryon

jacaerys velaryon x fem reader

summary: a clumsy encounter causes you to swap backpacks with jace.

warnings: too much fluff. curse words. modern au. cregan is the wing man. (he’s 18). loser jace (kinda?).

wc: +4K, english is not my first language.

Rain poured almost violently over Jacaerys’ face, streaming through his already damp curls as he moved with heavy, quick steps across the crowded high school parking lot, rushing toward the entrance.

As he entered the main hallway, he was enveloped by a mix of disconcerting sounds—broken conversations, scattered laughter, and low murmurs—mixed with the distant echo of thunder that rumbled loudly outside. The bad weather made the halls seem even more crowded than usual.

The dampness he had picked up from the bad weather seeped into his clothes, gradually heightening his irritation, which already felt nearly extreme. He felt as though everything was against him that morning and struggled to keep his mind from drifting to the day's disasters, especially the tantrum Joffrey had thrown at the kindergarten door.

He could barely remember the last time something like this had happened, which made the situation even more unbearable. His anxiety, usually under control, seemed to spread throughout his body, causing his muscles to tense anxiously beneath his damp sweater.

Adjusting the strap of his soaked backpack on his shoulder, Jace felt his heart beating with a force that, though small, seemed disproportionate for the start of a typical day. Glancing at the small clock on the hallway wall and seeing that he still had fifteen minutes before his first class began, he let out a sigh of relief, realizing that not everything was lost, though his body remained slightly tense.

However, when he turned and saw some of his classmates carefully carrying their science projects, his stomach dropped. His eyes widened as he realized that his own model was still in his father’s office, in the gym building on the other side of the school, forgotten amidst the morning's chaos, with today being the final deadline.

The brief relief he had felt moments earlier was quickly replaced by a wave of panic and anxiety. Jace’s heart, which had just started to settle, began pounding again with renewed intensity. Once more, he felt his feet hit the ground heavily as he braced himself to face the rain outside again.

He could feel the judging and confused stares of the students filling the hallways as he ran. Yet, he paid them no mind as he sped towards the door on the other side of the corridor, picking up the pace as the heavy raindrops were heating his face once again. This time, he couldn’t help but mutter a curse under his breath for forgetting his umbrella.

He was certain that his mom would give him a lecture about it as soon as she found out.

As Jace dashed out of the main building, he quickened his pace despite the rain drenching him. Instead of being distracted by the storm, his anxiety grew as he worried about getting even dirtier from the rainwater and how his glasses were now smeared and obscured by the droplets.

Upon finally arriving at the school gym, tired from the frantic running, he approached the main door with quick and urgent steps, trying to turn the handle with force due to the rush caused by the delay, and to make his growing irritation worse, the door was locked, and upon discovering this, frustration overwhelmed him. In a moment of anger, he kicked the door in irritation, pulled off his glasses, and threw his black backpack on the floor in a frustrated and frantic gesture.

That day was going poorly, and Jacaerys was certain he was going to miss his first class.

“Really? Are you that upset with the poor door?” Your voice, tinged with sarcasm, startled him, making him flinch and jump slightly at the unexpected sound. With his face flushed, he hesitated, too embarrassed to meet your gaze due to his earlier outburst and the noise he’d made that clearly drew your attention.

Jace’s breath caught in his throat as he turned towards the source of the voice, wiping his fogged-up glasses with a trembling hand. Standing a few feet away, you watched him with an arched eyebrow and a small smile playing at your lips. He couldn’t help but notice how comfortable you seemed.

However, what made him look at you with a confused and slightly alarmed expression was the fact that you didn’t seem to care about the rain at all, appearing unusually confident with your umbrella that seemed too flimsy to withstand such a downpour.

"I’m sorry," Jace said, forcing a smile as he put his now-clean glasses back on, trying to mask his embarrassment and confusion. "I didn’t realize anyone was here." He admitted, clearing his throat awkwardly and avoiding your gaze, which seemed to track his every move.

You gave a sweet laugh that made Jacaerys swallow hard. He watched as your lips parted with each burst of laughter, the sound growing louder and more charming. For some reason, he found himself unexpectedly drawn to it, liking it more than he expected.

"I noticed," you said with a small, apologetic smile. You then reached into your black backpack and absentmindedly set it near the edge of his. He raised his eyebrows in confusion. "It's my turn to open the door today. Sorry if I took a bit longer," you murmured, giving a slightly embarrassed smile as you watched him blink slowly, clearly surprised by your words.

Jace looked at you with an understanding, even slightly soft expression, while mentally scolding himself. He knew that if anyone else had been late on that disastrous morning, he would have likely lost his temper over their mistake and irresponsibility. However, with you, he simply cleared his throat and brushed off the issue with a casual gesture, as if he couldn’t bring himself to be mad at you. He wanted to slap himself.

“It's okay,” he said, pulling away slightly as the rain fell on his wet back, realizing he had stuttered, and quickly regaining his composure once he saw your mocking look. “At least you showed up,” he added with a dry laugh, internally cursing himself when he noticed your change in expression. He really wanted to slap himself.

Jace hesitated, ready to say something, but you just shrugged and quickly started opening the gym door. He felt a small sense of relief, though guilt still lingered for rushing you. He watched you with a conflicted mix of gratitude and discomfort, unable to shake the feeling that he had been too hasty.

“What are you looking for in there anyway?" You asked with curiosity, holding the door open and stepping aside to let him pass. He offered a quick “thank you” before walking through.

“My science project,” Jace said, and you looked at him, confused, wondering why his project was in the gym of all places. “It’s in my father’s office,” he explained, trying to hold back a laugh as he saw your astonished expression.

“So you’re Coach Strong’s son?” you asked. He nodded and headed toward his father’s office, with you following closely behind. He seemed to enjoy your interest, and for a moment, he was so caught up with you that he almost forgot he was running late.

“So, do you know my father?” He asked, glancing over his shoulder as he pushed open the office door and stepped inside, slightly surprised to be talking so comfortably with a stranger.

You let out a light laugh as you watched him carefully pick up his science project, and you couldn’t help but blush when he flashed you a shy, awkward smile.

He was too cute to be true.

You shook your head. “He coached my team when Coach Erryk got sick,” you explained playing with your hair, catching his curiosity as he approached the door. “I’m on the swimming team,” you added for clarity. He nodded, closing the door while glancing at you from the corner of his eye. He mentally chided himself when his gaze inadvertently lingered on your lips, confused by the sudden hormonal outburst.

Feeling his face flush, Jacaerys scratched his throat, trying to concentrate on the rhythmic sound of rain tapping against the gym windows. Although he was still slightly flustered, he found himself less nervous than he had been when he first arrived this morning.

However, his peace was interrupted as soon as the school alarm sounded, causing him to be startled and turn to you with an apologetic look, as if he had caused some trouble or was responsible for the interruption. At the same time, his eyes showed a trace of gratitude, as if you had done something good, which left you a bit confused, though you didn’t mention it.

“Well, I have to go,” he said softly, adjusting his glasses and giving you a quick, grateful smile. “Thanks again.” As he expressed his thanks, you noticed his anxiety increase after the alarm went off. His earlier composure seemed to slip away, leaving him visibly flustered and, despite his hurry, looking quite sad about leaving you there.

"You're welcome, I guess," you murmured the last part, watching as he gave you a final, hurried smile before rushing towards the gym door again. His science project was firmly tucked under his arm, and he moved with such urgency that he didn’t notice the amused look on your face. The scene seemed oddly amusing compared to his frantic energy.

Jace dashed outside, grabbing one of the soaked backpacks left near the door. He continued his frantic rush towards the main building, his mind focused solely on making up for lost time.

In his distracted state, Jace didn’t realize he had picked up the wrong bag. The backpack he now carried had a red pendant with your name on it, rather than the superhero charms he usually had. His preoccupation with catching up and the image of your face likely contributed to his mistake.

─────── ─────── ───────

"You haven't seen her since that day?" Cregan asked, his words slightly muffled by the food in his mouth, his eyes twinkling with amusement. He gave his friend a knowing look, far too entertained for someone who had heard the story at least five times. "So, this is why we've been having lunch here for the fifth time?" he added with a smirk, his gaze sweeping across the field near the gymnasium. Jace shrugged in response, trying—and failing—to hide the flush of embarrassment creeping up his neck.

The truth was that, yes, Jacaerys had been trying to find you for the past five days, hoping to exchange backpacks. He knew that the mix-up was entirely his fault; in his rush to get to class on time, he had barely noticed his mistake. It didn’t help that he had been distracted by you, the pretty girl he’d seen near the school gym. It seemed like everyone around him had already picked up on his sudden preoccupation, which made his attempts at subtlety feel almost pointless.

Baela had been the first to tease him after spotting the pendant on the backpack with your name on it, while Luke had turned the whole thing into a spectacle, loudly exaggerating the significance of it all. Jace could tell that even his mom had noticed something was up, probably suspecting that he had a crush. And then there was Cregan—always quick to find amusement in anything that promised a bit of entertainment even if he already knew everything, and in this situation he was no different. Jace wanted to kick him.

"I just want to hand over her backpack." Jacaerys replied defensively, leaning his back against the tree behind him while trying to ignore his best friend's gaze.

“So tell me why you didn’t just give the backpack to your dad?” Cregan asked with a wry grin, his voice dripping with irony. He pulled out a cigarette and a lighter, casually igniting the cigarette with a practiced flick. As he took a slow drag, he kept his eyes fixed on his friend, who was clearly struggling to keep his cool. 

Jace blinked slowly, struggling to reconcile his friend’s reasoning with the excuses he had made to avoid embarrassment. Despite his efforts, he couldn’t come up with a solid answer. Your image was so vividly imprinted in his mind that he felt paralyzed, unable to think about anything else, and even though he was reluctant to admit it, he was actually thankful for the backpack mix-up. It seemed like a chance to strike up a conversation with you, and he found himself caught between feeling a bit foolish and pleasantly surprised by the opportunity.

“Stop it,” Jacaerys said, clearly irritated after a moment of silence. Stark just laughed, letting out a stream of smoke from his cigarette. “You don’t know anything,” Jacaerys continued, pointedly ignoring the teasing look his friend gave him.

“That’s where you’re wrong!” Cregan said provocatively, lying down on the damp lawn, still soaked from the rain of the past few days. "You have a crush on her!" He hummed softly, propping his arms behind his head and slowly closing his eyes, oblivious to the upset and confused look on his friend’s face.

"I don’t!" Jace retorted quickly, adjusting his glasses as he spoke.

Cregan scoffed and rolled his eyes. Jacaerys might be smart in class, but when it came to his own feelings, he was totally clueless. Cregan even thought that he was friend was quite stupid.

“I’m not saying you’re in love with her!” Cregan said, clearly exasperated, as he stood up, giving his friend an intense look.

Jace’s frustration grew. “So what are you saying, then?” he snapped back, matching his tone.

Cregan threw his hands up in frustration. “I’m saying you think she’s pretty enough to kiss!” he exclaimed, placing a hand on his forehead as he let his cigarette fall into his lap.

Jace blinked slowly at the blunt accusation, his throat tightening. Cregan’s words hit home; he couldn’t deny that he found you incredibly beautiful, perhaps more than he’d ever admitted to himself. It made sense why you’d been on his mind since the day your paths crossed and why he found himself watching you so closely, drawn to your lips more often than he’d like to admit.

He blinked once again when he realized that his best friend was in fact, right. In fact, he had made his friend look up your name on every social network, realizing all the while that he hadn't exactly helped himself.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Cregan asked with a casual hum, lighting another cigarette. "It’s not a big deal to have a crush on someone. I had a crush on Aly," he shrugged, clearly unbothered by the distressed look on his friend’s face.

"And now you like her!" Jace said, his voice edged with desperation as he grappled with his feelings for you. "Are you telling me I might come to like her?" he asked, his tone betraying a hint of fear, though he wasn’t entirely upset by the idea.

"Yes," Cregan said simply, taking a drag from his cigarette.

"You’re not helping me, man!" Jace hissed, pushing his hand under his glasses and rubbing his eyes in a futile attempt to clear the image of you from his mind.

"I know." Cregan shrugged again, watching Jacaerys with mild amusement as he continued to frantically rub his eyes. “You should ask her out!”

“What the fuck are you trying to say?” He pulled his hand away from his eyes and stared at his friend in disbelief, as if he had sprouted three heads.

“Relax, it’s just a thought,” Cregan said, a playful smirk on his face as he glanced behind his friend. “Actually, today might be your lucky day.” Without giving Jacaerys a chance to respond, Cregan dashed off, nodding toward the figure behind him and making heart shapes with his hands. Jacaerys baffled, turned around, and froze, holding his breath as he saw you standing right there hugging his backpack.

He could hear his best friend’s laughter fading into the background, but the moment his eyes met yours, it felt like time slowed down and his heart lodged in his throat, as if he had been swallowed by your presence. Everything around him seemed to vanish as he took in the sight of you standing there, your eyes meeting his with such an adorably confused expression that it made his chest tighten.

Jace was certain that breathing had suddenly become more difficult, his mind racing with thoughts of how beautiful you looked in that moment and how your eyes seemed even more pretty in the sunlight. He had to blink slowly just to refocus and prepare himself for the conversation that was about to begin.

“Hi!” you began, noticing Jace blink again at the sound of your soft yet cheerful voice. “Jace, right?” You tilted your head slightly, watching as he nodded with his mouth slightly agape, which made you let out a soft laugh. “Well, my name is—”

“I know!” he interrupted, his eyes widening slightly when he realized how loudly he’d spoken. He quickly cleared his throat, his cheeks flushing a deep red as he nervously rubbed the back of his neck. Despite his embarrassment, you responded with a light, amused laugh. “I saw your name on the pendant of your backpack,” he explained more softly, giving a small, forced cough to mask his embarrassment.

Thank goodness Cregan wasn’t there; Jacaerys knew he’d never hear the end of it.

“Oh, right!” You gave another soft chuckle, feeling a blush creep onto your cheeks as well. “I brought your backpack. Sorry it took me so long,” you added, your voice quieter now but still carrying that same cheerful tone. You watched as he stood up, a bit flustered, as he reached out to take your backpack.

“Everything’s fine,” he said awkwardly, now standing right in front of you as he stretched out his arm to hand you your backpack. You quickly mimicked his action, passing him his own backpack in return. “Did something happen?” he asked, his voice tinged with concern as he noticed the way you hugged your backpack tightly. His expression softened as he looked at you. 

You sighed, taking in the lingering scent of him that now clung to your backpack, a satisfied breath escaping as you savored the familiar trace. You met his brown eyes with an awkward smile. “I was sick the last few days, so that’s why I missed school,” you explained, your voice tinged with dissatisfaction. Jace responded with a soft, nasal laugh, his concern easing as he realized that you were now okay.

“Well,” he began, moving closer without realizing it, making you hold your breath. “I’m really glad you’re feeling better!” he said, his eyes showing he truly meant it.

“Thanks,” you said, trying to ignore the warmth on your cheeks and the closeness between you. He seemed oblivious to the proximity of your bodies in that moment, which made you clear your throat awkwardly. When he finally realized how close you were, his cheeks flushed as well. However, both of you felt a certain discomfort when that closeness came to an end.

“Well, I think I should go,” you said, taking a hesitant step back, not wanting to distance yourself any further. Jace’s eyes followed you, his expression showing concern and reluctance, as if he too wished the moment could last a little longer. Though he wouldn’t admit it, he didn’t want this to be the last time you both spoke.

As you turned to head back toward the gym building, he reached out and gently grabbed your wrist, making you look back at him in surprise. The touch was warm and comforting, and despite your confusion, you found yourself unwilling to move away from him.

“Is something wrong?” you asked, noticing how Jace swallowed hard before looking at you with a touch of distress, as if he were on the verge of doing something he’d never done before. His hesitation only made you tilt your head in curiosity. For a moment, you could have sworn you saw his gaze flicker to your lips.

“What time do you finish swim practice?” he asked, his eyes fixed intently on your lips. The question hung in the air, charged with a lingering, almost nervous energy as he struggled to keep his gaze steady. You were stunning in his eyes.

“Around 7:00 pm,” you replied, tilting your head slightly as you tried to ignore the blush creeping onto your cheeks. “But why do you want to know?” you asked, your voice filled with intense curiosity and a hint of excitement.

Jace swallowed hard, his gaze briefly falling to the ground as he gathered his courage.

“I wanted to ask you,” he began, his voice trembling slightly yet firm as he looked up at your flushed face. “If I could walk you home today?” He finished the question quickly, as if fearing he might lose his courage. Despite his evident nervousness, his gaze stayed fixed on yours, full of anticipation, and when he saw your face light up with a broad smile, a visible wave of relief washed over him.

“I’d like that,” you replied with a soft smile, your eyes shining with genuine enthusiasm as you watched Jace’s face light up in response.

“Great! I’ll see you outside after practice,” he said with a smile, gently releasing your wrist and waiting for you to head into the building so he could return to Cregan. However, as you turned to enter the school gym, you paused for a moment.

With a playful glint in your eyes, you turned back toward Jace and leaned in, pressing a light kiss to his cheek. The touch was brief but enough to leave Jace momentarily stunned, his cheeks flushing an even deeper shade of red.

“See you later then,” you murmured, your voice carrying a playful tone. Jace watched you walk away, his heart racing and a smile tugging at his lips. Cregan was right, he definitely had a crush on you.

─────── ─────── ───────

Jace stood in front of the school gymnasium, the sun beginning to set on the horizon, painting the sky in shades of orange and pink. He could barely control his anxiety as he waited. Swim practice hadn’t ended yet, but Jace was already there, ten minutes earlier than planned.

He leaned against the gym wall, his hands in his pockets, trying to appear calm. But inside, his heart was racing, and he kept glancing at the gym doors every few seconds, hoping to see her come out. His thoughts kept drifting back to the kiss you gave him on the cheek, and for a moment, he wished you had kissed him somewhere else, though he wouldn’t dare admit that out loud.

He tried to push the nerves aside, but it was impossible. The idea of spending more time with you, casually talking as night fell, left him restless, and he couldn’t help but feel excited about it. He’d never felt anything like this before, maybe because he had never talked to a girl for more than five minutes, and that made his nerves spread so much that he had been unable to focus in class all afternoon. Cregan, of course, didn’t help at all, making jokes about how Jace was ‘head over heels.’

Just as he was beginning to lose himself in his thoughts, the gym door finally opened. Jace’s heart skipped a beat when he saw you step out, your hair still slightly damp from practice but with a radiant smile on your face. And as he saw you from a distance, he couldn't help but smile back as you walked toward him.

“Hi,” you said softly, still a few steps away, your voice carrying the usual playful tone that made his cheeks flush involuntarily and his heart pound disproportionately in his chest. He didn’t quite understand why he was feeling this way; after all, you barely knew each other, but he was almost certain that whatever he was feeling, you were too.

“Hi,” Jace replied, trying to sound casual, but his voice faltered slightly, betraying the nervousness he felt. He stepped closer to you, a smile spreading across his face as he tried to find the right words. “How was practice?” he asked, offering you his arm, which left you momentarily confused, but the confusion quickly turned into another smile when he took your backpack and offered to carry it for you.

He was the perfect gentleman, and you couldn’t help but be charmed by it.

"The practice was pretty intense, but I'm glad it's over," you said with a smile, reaching for your backpack. Jace gently held it just out of your reach, giving you a playful nudge as he started walking, with you quickly following him.

"I'm sure you did great," he said encouragingly, glancing at his car as you both passed by it. He considered offering you a ride, but the thought of cutting short the time both of you could spend together made him hesitate. He wanted to savor every moment with you, so he decided to walk with you instead, making the most of the time you two had together.

As you continued walking side by side, a comfortable silence settled over you. Jace noticed the curiosity sparkling in your eyes and couldn't help but smile. With a playful raise of his eyebrow, he looked at you, clearly anticipating the question he knew was on your mind. It wasn’t long before you broke the silence, eager to speak. 

“So...” you began, humming thoughtfully. Jace’s amused gaze intensified, though he found it hard to keep his eyes from drifting to your lips. He had never wanted to kiss anyone as much as he wanted to kiss you.

“What’s it like to be Coach Harwin’s son?” you asked without hesitation or embarrassment. He burst out laughing at your question, leaving you momentarily embarrassed, but he quickly regained his composure and began to answer. 

The next few minutes were spent with you and Jacaerys talking about your parents, exchanging stories and a few harmless jokes about them, and you couldn’t help but notice how Jace’s face lit up every time he mentioned his parents and siblings. He was definitely close to his family, always speaking about them with a tenderness that was impossible not to notice, and in a way, it warmed your heart.

Yet, you couldn’t help but notice that in the middle of the conversation, his eyes kept drifting to your lips and then back to your eyes.

Around 7 p.m., you and Jace arrived at the front door of your house. He struggled to keep his composure, fighting the urge to kiss you as you pouted, clearly reluctant to part ways. The thought of saying goodbye seemed to weigh heavily on both of you.

"That went by too quickly," you said with a sigh, picking up your backpack with a slight frown. Jace laughed softly, his amusement evident despite the shared sentiment. He nodded in agreement, feeling the same reluctance.

"Well, it’s not like we won’t see each other again," he said, his cheeks tinged with red as he noticed your hopeful gaze. "If you want, I can walk you home again tomorrow," he offered. His smile grew wider as he saw the bright spark of satisfaction in your eyes.

"I’d like that," you murmured with satisfaction, your eyes sparkling with excitement. As you both stood at the door, he couldn’t help but notice how the streetlights made you look even more beautiful.

Taking a reluctant step back, Jace’s gaze softened as it met yours. "Great, then I'll see you tomorrow," he said, his tone light but sincere, trying to mask his nervousness and excitement for the next day. He took another step back, unsure of what to do next, trying to keep his gaze away from your lips.

"See you tomorrow," you replied, bringing him out of his brief trance with your voice laced with anticipation as you opened the door. Jace watched you enter, his smile lingering as he turned to leave.

Jace turned to leave, reminding himself that he still needed to retrieve his car from the school parking lot. Yet the image of you—your smile, the way your lips had lingered in his mind—made it impossible for him to focus on anything else. He walked a few meters, his heart racing and his mind swirling with thoughts about what had just happened and what would happen tomorrow.

The idea of going back felt almost impossible. Abruptly, he stopped in his tracks, struggling against the urge to go back. He bit his lip hard and muttered, “Oh, to hell with it,” to himself.

Without thinking twice, Jacaerys turned around and walked back to your house, his heart pounding with the adrenaline of each step and the sudden, almost reckless decision he had made. As he reached your front door again, he sighed and hesitated for a moment before knocking firmly.

“Jace, what are you doing here?” you asked, your voice a mix of surprise and curiosity as you opened the door. Your heart raced at the sight of him there, his gaze fixed on you. “I had to come back,” he said, his voice trembling slightly, still out of breath from running back.

“I need to kiss you. Please, let me kiss you.” His eyes, filled with sincere longing and a hint of vulnerability, searched yours for a sign of approval. Seeing how anxious he was, you nodded without hesitation, feeling his soft lips gently press against yours.

Your lips are pressed against his, and you cling tightly to the fabric of his hoodie, pulling him closer, which makes him smile slightly, satisfied. The kiss is gentle but filled with an intensity that makes the world around you both almost disappear. When you finally pull away a bit, your eyes meet as you both try to catch your breath.

Jace smiled, his cheeks flushed with a mix of embarrassment and delight. “I really needed to do that,” he said softly, his voice brimming with sincerity and a touch of nervousness.

You smiled back, feeling a warm flush on your lips from the kiss. “I’m really glad you did,” you replied, your voice filled with genuine appreciation.

He took a hesitant step back, still holding your gaze with a look of endearing affection. “I should go now,” he said, his tone laced with a subtle hint of reluctance. “But... can I still see you tomorrow?” His eyes, still fixed on yours, conveyed a mixture of excitement and nervous anticipation.

You nodded, your heart fluttering with a smile. “Definitely. I’ll see you tomorrow, Jace,” you responded warmly.

His face lit up with a contented smile, and he began to walk away, turning back once more to give you one last, lingering look. “See you tomorrow,” he said softly before he finally turned and walked off, a satisfied expression on his face.

And even though your first meeting had been far from ideal, Jace couldn’t help but feel it had turned out perfectly, especially since you were his first kiss, with him being excited to get to know you better.

2024 © do not repost or translate my work anywhere else.

— likes, comments and reblogs are appreciated!

tag list: @earth4angels @hearts4li @ethereal-athalia @velaryonbastard @throughgoeshamilton

[lady-buggerinton]

My Top Five Polin Scenes in Part One (and why!)

My darling gossipers, so far this show is making literally all of my hopeless romantic dreams for this couple come true and who knows what kind of angst and drama were in for in part two, so before things gets too real I just wanted to go into (too much) depth on my favorite scenes and a few swoon-worthy details from part one! *whips reigns on carriage* shall we?

5. Drawing Room Lesson/Journal

Pen's brain: TOUCH ALERT! HIS HAND IS ON MY BACK.

This scene is so best friend coded with the way they are bantering and flirting the whole time. There's an adorable contrast between Penelope's fear of being discovered and Colin being like it's chill!(when in fact it is not Chill because they get interrupted after 5 minutes of gazing into each others eyes)

He just clearly wanted to be completely alone and behind closed doors platonically with his very beautiful friend (who looks like an angel in this scene) to pretend they are courting. Nothing suspicious about that!

I love how he's so into the lesson to the point that he has set out the lemonade as a prop and brought her to Bridgerton house in the first place specifically because she said it was where she was most comfortable (previously, but he's doing his best, and probably hoping she will become comfortable again, ouch)

Colin being the "dashing suitor" for her to flirt with (loser) and when she's resistant to fake flirting with him he hits her with the, "you don't have to be embarrassed, you know me!" trying to put her at ease. And he succeeds! Penelope is so comfortable during this scene when she's opening up about how it's hard for her to get her personality across, it's so sweet and honest.

And this is when the ROMANCING really starts, I love how it's Penelope who takes the lead here. mostly by accident, but the poor man is still left in shambles.

I do kind of wish for this scene they had gone with a more back and forth flirting moment, and seen them both get a little taste of how overtly flirting with each other would feel rather than her little poetic moment, but it was sweet to see her expose a corner of her feelings for him and watching him get a tad flustered at the compliment.

Ok, while it was rather uncool of her to read his journal, I love this part so much. Because I am no better, I would 100 percent do this given the chance. Her examining the space where he spends time, her running her hand over his pirate coat, (who wouldn't) the quiet yearning of that action. As a snoop myself, this was wish fulfillment.

Penelope being hit with a confusing mix of jealousy and intrigue by the contents of the journal entry, the way she stops reading for just a second and then gives in and devours his writing, not being able to hold back from getting inside his head. Don't think about how she probably missed his letters.

Colin's anger here is warranted, and I liked how he didn't come across as aggro-angry Colin from the books but is still justifiably upset that his privacy has been violated. He is likely aware that there are certain DETAILS he wouldn't want her to be reading, like how he's a lonely lonely sad little man trying to be rakish and roguish because his beautiful platonic friend isn't writing him back and encouraging him like she usually does.

Can I just mention that bandaging a wound is an excellent trope and it's such a good romancing vehicle: the care, the tenderness, the touching! the GRUMPINESS! But my favorite thing about the wound bandaging is his reaction to her complimenting his work, of which he hasn't shown ANYONE. He's just so shocked that she likes it, and clearly starved for her encouragement/anyone to be interested in his travels.

I think its also worth noting that this is THE moment that Colin thinks back to when he's considering activating his chaos tendencies by rolling up to the red ball to interrupt her proposal, so I'm gonna interpret that as him recalling his first realization/admittance to himself that he has feelings for her beyond friendship.

It wouldn't surprise me since it is after this moment that we see the hints of jealousy start to manifest at the full moon ball (looking for her, asking her if she likes a suitor, he's not subtle with it). Can't blame him, he was just touched with intimacy and care, and told his creative outlet is well-written, he is being ROMANCED to the max and he can't handle it.

We also have our first "please" as Pen asks to help, and as we will see, these two can't say no to each other once the magic word is spoken! I hope this theme makes a comeback in part two (please please please)

4. Market Scene

ok, besides a semi-silly looking wig on Colin (reshoots) this scene is first of all, so beautiful.

SHE IS SO FINE IN THIS SCENE I CAN'T EVEN THINK. She looks like a preraphaelite painting and I'm gnawing at the bars of my enclosure.

I literally kept saying "wow" out loud. It actually makes the scene very silly to me because she keeps talking about how she'll never snag a husband and I'm over here on one knee begging for a chance.

If Penelope has been Colin's cheerleader and #1 supporter for their whole friendship, this is where that flips. This scene is all about Pen feeling dejected about her prospects and Colin trying to lift her spirits -basically by saying she doesn't need to work on anything because he already likes her so much without her doing anything but I digress!

There is nothing hotter than your crush talking about a shared memory! Literally nothing! You can see her absolutely light up here when he talks about their first meeting like "I can't believe he remembered" and "Shit, I'm trying to not be in love" and it makes me ache for her.

I am very sad we didn't get a meet cute flashback (hello romcom!!) but this was the next best thing. He's also definitely still in Rake Mode with the way he is being charming and flirty, but there is a core of genuine feeling here as he is trying to get her find her confidence and be more like the non-self conscious children they once were. I believe a lot of the rift between them was directly because she had such strong feelings for him and couldn't just connect with him as friends due to the pedestal she put him on, this scene shows that without that as a barrier, they are able to connect much more naturally.

"Living for the estimation of others is a trap, once you break free the world opens up," he says, and he's starting to realize this idea but hasn't quite put it into practice. I think seeing Penelope struggling to be something she's not, just like he is, shows him how it's not working for either of them. This I think kickstarts his self-reflection and eventual rejection of external pressures later on, leaving him open to pursue other passions.

Ok but what I LOVE most in this scene is his subtle digging for information about her that she isn't forthcoming with. He asks her why she wants a husband and where she feels most comfortable, peppering her with questions and also giving her zero personal space. He's very curious about her and what is going on inside, but she's not exactly open with him at this point, giving short and simple answers.

She's genuinely not used to someone asking her this many questions about herself, receiving this kind of devoted attention, and she clearly doesn't know quite how to respond. In fact, the dynamic has always been reversed, where she was encouraging and inquiring about him, so this switch is just excellent. there have been little moments throughout the series where he asks about her and she always seems to deflect to talking more about him, so it's nice to see this shift.

Also fun detail, the grecian statues behind them are a little nod to the eros and psyche vibes of the scene as cupid is trying to find a match for his psyche, but is slowly beginning to fall for her, his curiosity the first step towards total downfall.

When he asks about Eloise is where Pen just completely shuts down and says she has to leave, and the "before we are noticed" with the little smile? I have fallen in love. She's clearly using that as an excuse to dodge the question, and it is almost an inside joke, sadly. As if she's saying "No one would believe you are courting me anyway haha". And yet he's clearly bummed she's leaving, he was having such a good time, and she leaves him hanging, wanting to know more. I also absolutely love the Rae side eye, lethal!

3. Candy Tent

Post-kiss insanity is on full display here. The way she beckons him with a sexy head tilt and he came running, the way his hands give away his nervousness and his eyes keep locking on her helplessly. Just FULL ON crush mode. The soft "How are you?" he missed her!

Also outfits are incredible here, the pearls in the hair, the painted vest, Colin inventing the color brown, it's a rococo dream. The plushy pink of the tent, the ambiance, everything is just in a word: sumptuous? never used that but it feels right here.

Pen's giddiness here is just adorable, she's experiencing blatant interest for the first time and I couldn't be happier for her. But someone else is very peeved, indeed. He's trying to play the part of supportive friend while also just kind of feeling a lot of "confounding feelings"

The way he is trying to be so casual and attempting to keep up his swagger, but his true feelings are showing through BAD kind of harkens back to how Pen would interact with Colin in s1 and 2, with barely contained affection and hope. The script has been FLIPPED and it feels so good!!

I literally squeal every time he asks her if she's formed an attachment to Debling, this is the shit I signed up for!! Her saying Debling is not "unpleasant to gaze upon" and watching Colin just completely glitch out with jealousy. He's like AND WHAT ABOUT ME! Must be frustrating to be the most eligible bachelor of the season, and yet your very beautiful crush friend is complementing another man on his looks. When your crush expresses interest in someone it can be truly insanity inducing, so I feel for him here.

Pen is oblivious completely, she doesn't think any of what she is saying is negatively affecting him, in fact she thinks this news will make him happy! His lessons worked, she didn't care about being perceived and it is having the desired affect! and yet, he's miserable. Mission accomplished unsuccessfully if you will.

He does ALMOST a good job of hiding his feelings, but if Pen were not completely convinced he couldn't have feelings for her, I think she would've picked up on the vibes here. He's way less enthusiastic about the lessons, and is giving fairly curt responses, when before he was yapping on about being yourself and such.

Then of course the blatant staring at her mouth, being the yearning sort of man he is and likely recalling their kiss in detail, reminder it's been at least a week since. She's romancing him without even trying. It also makes sense for "food motivated" Colin to have Penelope + cake equals critical override of his facial expressions and his literally standing there slack-jawed with lust.

His soft "good luck", when she leaves and the fact that he doesn't mean it AT ALL.

I've seen it talked about, but it makes a lot of sense that Penelope wasn't as affected by the kiss as he was. I'm sure she enjoyed it, but for her the kiss was an end (more on that later) and for him it was the moment he admitted his feelings (which were already growing slowly). so it makes sense the yearning is very colin-sided in this scene.

Apart from the yearning, it's also just sweet to see them in cahoots and discussing this development with Debling like its a little group project, and its the perfect scene to show Down Bad Colin, and I love it. She also clearly wants him to share with her in her success, still wanting to be close to him in any way she can, which if I think about too much I'll cry.

Bonus points for him eating the cake later on, such an intimate detail, he just wants to be close to her in any way he can. CRIMINAL! ARREST HIM!

2. First kiss/Dream Sequence

Ok I'm combining these scenes because they happen back to back and sort of like a mirror of each other, sue me. This first kiss scene is, as Whistledown says, RECKLESS. It's nonsensical, it's desperate, and it's beautiful.

This scene has only improved upon rewatches, it really has everything. Best kiss scene on Bridgerton and possibly in anything ever? no doubt no doubt?

The silly back and forth on the "You're not going to die" and the way she doesn't back down when he seems to get embarrassed, but instead says what? The Magic Word! "Please" she says, which of course is both of their activation word. His expressions here definitely mirror the book, where as soon as she asks him to kiss her, he's a bit taken aback by how much he realizes he wants to already.

This is such a low moment for Penelope, and it's one parts embarrassing and two parts brave of her to ask him to kiss her. In her position, she doesn't even have her pride left, so why not ask the boy you love to kiss you? nothing will come of it anyway, and he probably won't even do it, so why not ask? And what are friends for!

then the moment comes, and the music swells, as does the tension as he closes the distance between them, her shocked face and shallow breaths as she realizes its actually going to happen, the way he lifts her face to his with his hand under her chin. It's just pure romance. and this thing between them, this space that has never been crossed, is being crossed, and it feels insane. reckless. intimate!!

What I love is the shot that focuses on his face after they deepen the kiss, he's intent and confused by how good this feels, how little like kindness this is for him as soon as their lips touch. Like we will see later, he just kind of mind-blanks and forgets what is happening.

Whatever he thought they were has just crumbled with this kiss, and he leans his forehead against hers, no awkwardness when there is such tenderness. which is why he's so shook when she whispers "thank you", and rushes off. he's like "wait why is she thanking me? where am I? weren't we doing something here?" The hopeful strings as it focuses on his dumbstruck face, the earth literally shifting under his feet in that moment. UNREAL.

THE DREAM: I won't say a lot about the dream sequence but I just had to throw it in here because it shows how aligned they are romantically. They are both HUGE romantics, and he has orchestrated this sort of do-over kiss where he's really going for it and proving to her that he wants this too, he wants her. And she's enjoying herself, clearly, which we know is something Colin wants more than anything. It's a great way to show his inner feelings with the lack of an inner monologue that a book brings. And this is clearly a sort of parody of Bridgerton itself, or at least the books. It's over the top, a little silly, and exactly what we all want to see.

This dream also isn't just ripping off clothes, it's emotional, a key element is him expressing how he's been thinking about her, consumed by her. This kiss also isn't as innocent and patient as the first kiss, and it's full of Reciprocation, she can't stop thinking about him either. AND NEITHER CAN I!!!

Both of these kiss scenes also set up our contrasting feelings, where Pen views their first kiss as an end of a dream, a bittersweet act to finally let go off him, the dream of him. And then his dream shows the opposite, how she's ignited something in him that begins his dream of her, awake and asleep. Dream-swap! Also the hand on the wall behind her to catch her from hitting the wall. no comment.

1. Carriage Scene

Yeah like what can I say! It's incredible! I honestly have no idea how they can top this scene, but honestly if this is the best love scene they share in the season I am 10000% content. All of my little qualms with how they did the season melt away when I watch this scene because this was what was crucial to nail and they NAILED IT. TO THE WALL BABY. YAY.

And how did he gain access to the carriage (and Penelope)?? by saying please!! we love the magic word!! I do like the confession a lot, especially the "what if I did have feelings for you?" and the way he gets to his KNEES, a truly inspired moment.

How he completely dies inside when she says they are friends, and still accepts it with grace. There were SO many obstacles to him expressing his feelings to her this night, and he just red rovered each one, and we are all very grateful.

Something about this scene is just built different, I like a lot of the love scenes in the show, but this one has some kind of secret ingredient that we didn't know we'd been missing. Maybe its the location, the context, the way they are just grasping at each other desperately (which if you think about how Penelope thought this was a one time thing in the books and she wanted to make the most of it, actually don't think about that)

He's also just so sweet about it, he's not angry, or insistent, he's just honest and intent. and she's just bewildered and INTO IT.

The lightning is gorgeous, the way it looks like Penelope is catching on fire and glowing. the catharsis, the giving into passion. The way she smiles like her dreams are coming true (because they are) before he just completely attacks her. What else can I say but EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

so many of the kisses are so tender and gentle, and they just build and build and build in intensity as they get lost in each other.

on a more horny note, so many moments here actually make me physically roll my eyes back in my head with how insane they make me. The desperate boob grab, the consensual nod, the way his hand slips under her dress, they were truly so insane for this. something tells me they knew I've waited literal years for this, so they knew they had to make it good.

Someone said Nicola should get an Emmy nom for moans, and she should, somehow they don't come across as cartoonish at all, and it doesn't take me out of the scene like some "noise making" does in these types of scenes. and for the record I'm not jealous at all, of either of them. in fact, no sooner did my head hit the pillow that I was met with complete and total darkness....not even a dream....

Like everything I could say has already been said, but it was so much better than I thought it was going to be, blew my expectations out of the water and DELIVERED. and DEVOURED. and RUINED ME. AND I AM VERY GRATEFUL.

Anyway that's all, I'm very afraid for part two so I needed some escapism, why am I already nostalgic for the good ol' times when Polin was happy for 6 minutes. thanks for reading! <3

[iamyourdailydoseofbi]

WILL YOU PRAY FOR ME? ( House of the Dragon x Reader )

AUTHOR NOTE! Trying out writing Aegon some more for my fic, 'THE CONQUEROR REBORN'. <3 pairing: DARK! Aegon ii Targaryen x Fem! Hightower! Reader prompt: Aegon finds you praying in the Sept before the Battle of Rook's Rest. This is not a friendly encounter. word count: 1, 298+ words

You had been sent to King’s Landing as a means of assurance that House Hightower, Aegon’s Mother side of the family, was completely loyal to him and his cause. You dreaded it, wishing you had been born a man or married off to some Lord from far away. King’s Landing was in chaos, the common folk struggling to adapt to the changes due to the war. Whilst the Red Keep was a mix of chaotically trying to plan out the war and comforting a fragile minded Helaena. 

It did not help that the predatory eyes that were Aegon’s that followed you everywhere. From when you entered a room until you left, if the walls had eyes then they surely would have followed you there as well. In hopes of avoiding any conflict or attempts of any kind, the Sept became your safe haven. Aegon did not attend the daily mass, nor did he believe in the Faith of the Seven. 

So, those hours long masses were a good enough excuse to get out of the Red Keep and to keep your distance from Aegon. After the rumors of Aegon’s past in Silk Street floated towards your ear, no matter how hard Alicent tried to stop it, it gave you reason enough to keep far far far far away from him. Even if he was your distant cousin and King of the Seven Kingdoms. 

Kneeling in front of the large statue of the Mother, you did not pray for anything a girl of your age and high standing usually would have, not for the blessing of fertility and easy labor. No, you prayed for mercy and peace on behalf of your sweet distant cousin and Queen consort Helaena. The poor girl did not deserve the fate given to her, to marry her older brother and to watch her innocent son be slaughtered in front of her. Helaena deserved peace and mercy. 

Grabbing a match from benches in front of the statue, you light an unlit candle, watching the flames crackle and pop for a second. Weakly smiling at the alluring glow of candlelight, you blow out the match, shifting on the velvet stool in front of the statue of the Mother. Letting out a gentle sigh, you clasps your hands together in a prayer motion, ready to begin your prayers for your sweet cousin. 

“So this is where you run off to.” Aegon states, his loud footsteps filling the once quiet Sept.

Shit. Shit. Shit. 

“I had hoped for something more interesting or scandalous.” Aegon comments amused, “But, considering how much of a prude Oldtown is, I am not surprised you're here.” 

“Your grace, I was not expecting you here.” You weakly get out, dreading turning around. 

“I can tell. You're tense.” 

Tensing up even more as he points it out, you turn around to look at him, your eyes looking him over. His hair was unruly as ever, only making it more obvious that he lacked the knowledge of a hairbrush of any kind. Though you were sure that he never combed it in his entire life as it was very fit for his character. 

Narrowing your eyes at what he was wearing, the steel chest plate clearly did not fit him, the leather straps holding the chest plate together looking seconds away from bursting. You’d never comment on it, but he would have better luck squeezing himself into a corset than trying to wear that armor.  

“I was taken by surprise by you. Do forgive me for it, your grace.” You mumble weakly, now praying that he would go away.

“I see you are admiring me. I do not blame you. I do look rather dashing, had nearly all of the whores in Silk Street throw themselves at me.” He jests, though it only makes your lips curled up into a disgusted look. 

A poet. No, a drunk. No, no, a whore. Anyone could have come up with a better conversation starter than that. 

“I am sure you enjoyed that, your grace.” You nod, “You look like the true epitome of a King.”

Shifting your eyes away from him, you tense up as he stands beside your stool, dangerously close to touching you. Aegon had always given you an odd feeling, not quite hatred but not quiet enjoyment, more like a neutral contentment. From the cordial conversations at dinner with the rest of the family, he was decent enough. Of course, before he gorged himself on Arbor red and food. 

“Will you pray for me?” He asks, his hand brushing against the side of your cleavage.

“What?” You blurt out, tensing up at the ‘accidental’ touch. 

“I said, will you pray for me, sweet cousin?” He asks, a dark glint in his eyes. “Pray for your King to return from battle unmarred?”

“I will, if you ask me to.” You mumble, feeling forced to comply. 

Cowering backwards as he leans in dangerously close, every part of your body told you that you were not safe this close to him. He was a Targaryen, the King, your distant cousin, and a married man nonetheless. An unmarried woman such as yourself should not be this close to him. Pushing down the fear that bubbled up inside of you, he tenderly touches your chin, tilting your head up to meet his gaze better. Your lips dangerously close to touching if either of you leaned in. 

Carefully looking over his features, you would never say it aloud, but in another life he would be considered ethereal. Those stunning amethyst eyes and white curls that all Targaryen’s had. Those sharp features that were framed with a soft pudginess from his recent gain of weight. The soft pink under his eyes and on the tip of his nose from restless nights. Remembering where you were, you instantly pull back from him, keeping a distance from him. 

“When I return from Rook’s Rest, victorious, like I know that I will. I will take you as my second wife, I need an heir and you are fit for that.” He states, an almost sinister glimmer in his eyes. 

“But, it is forbidden. In the eyes of the Seven and of the common law. No man should take two wives.” You argue, praying it would be enough to spook him off.  

“I am King, my word is law. Not to mention, twas’ my ancestor who took two wives. Who am I to deny tradition?” He counters, the tone of his voice leaving no room to argue.

No. No. No. Now he cares of tradition? Of duty?

Realizing that there truly was no way to sway his mind on the matter, you sink in the velvet stool, a twindle of defeat filling you. You would be his second wife, his bride. Just a broodmare, someone to warm his bed whenever he called for you like a dog. No one would be able to protest this, to argue on your behalf because he was right, he was King. His word held more power than anyone in the Seven Kingdoms. Your fate was sealed, it seemingly was when you were shipped to King’s Landing. 

"But-" You try, but he cuts you off.

“Now, I will expect you to await my return with eagerness, my little bride-to-be.” He whispers, his lips brushing against the shell of your ear.

You don’t speak, your tongue feeling as if it was made of lead.  Even if you could, you could not promise that you would not lash out on him. 

“Oh, and when I do come back, wait for me in my chambers dressed in that pretty little chemise of yours. I liked the one with the pink ribbon.” He whispers, the last part of his words sending a cold shiver down your spine. 

He had been watching you whilst you were in your chambers. For gods knows how long.

----

@lovelykhaleesiii

@fragileheartbeats

@danytar

[monarchberrysblog]

𝑼𝒏𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍

part one — nasty dog 🐕

An inspired baby daddy au from @yougavemeyourheartyouknow as I wanted to add my own spin to it!

🥏 summary: you and miguel meet for the first time…

🥏 content warning: suggestive content ahead! miguel is a little perv. (ooc miguel), poor dog training tips (I've never owned a pet, period, so don't take my word for it.) and slow ahh, character introduction, and lastly, cheesy rom-com layout.

🥏 word count: +2.0k words (I might have over done it....)

🥏 author’s notes: ive been so excited to post this! I hope you all enjoy and thank you for taking the time to read as well 💙 I do apologize for not posting as it has been a difficult time for a lot of people including myself other than that, thank you for reading 🥹

🛝 not proofread! 🛝

As the minutes passed, the little puppy unleashed an unrelenting chorus of barks and yaps, desperately seeking attention from its indifferent owner. With each eager yap, it yearned to escape the confines of the cramped apartment studio, dreaming of the wide-open spaces of Central Park.

The tiny puppy dashed energetically across the glossy laminated floor, its pink leash dangling playfully from its mouth. As it eagerly pranced about, it suddenly skidded to a halt, only to miscalculate its stop and bump gently into the corner of a nearby side table.

The impact drew a soft whine from the floppy-eared pup, adding a touch of vulnerability to its spirited spunk. With determination shining in its bright eyes, the little dog shook off the moment, its fur ruffling, and then set off at full speed toward a specific bedroom, its tiny paws pattering in excited rhythm.

The thought of stretching its tiny legs amidst the soft grass was nothing more than a distant hope, an innocent wish for freedom that seemed far too extravagant to fulfill. A fulfill that is a need than a want.

The puppy sneaks in between the open crevice between the door and the doorframe. Its little nails scrape against the wooden floor and stop at the bedside. The puppy drops the leash on the floor before confidently yapping its little barks to its owner.

The puppy whines in defeat before its dark eyes lock on the throw blanket, and a little idea forms. With a big bite, the puppy bites on the fabric and plays a round of tug-of-war against the blanket. The little idea finally works, as its owner wakes up and tugs the blanket back towards them.

“Bella, por favor!” You groan, firmly grasping the blanket and tug. The puppy, Bella, growls and yanks.

Despite the satin pink ribbons decorating her ears to give her an innocent look, the puppy was far from it. She growled lowly from her chest cavity, yanking on the lilac blanket.

“Let go!” You strain through gritted teeth but get a harsh bark from the puppy, causing you to drop the blanket quickly.

Bella yips and rolls around the blanket, losing her small figure in the fuzzy material. You sit on your bed now, looking at the hyperactive puppy rolling around your laminated floors like a piglet in a mud hole. You blow a heavy exhale, effectively blowing a strand of hair away from your face.

“The chick at the shelter wasn't kidding…” You exhale and rub your eyes. The tiny puppy continues to roll about before she stops as if she remembers why she wanted to raise chaos into the morning. She fetches her leash, wagging her tail.

You groan and nod. “Only for fifteen minutes. To pee and poop.” You drag yourself out of bed, taking your blankets down with you.

She does a victory lap around you as you muster the courage to step out of your apartment. “Give me a minute, Bella…”

“Hey, just to let you know, this pupper is active.” The young woman warns, mindlessly chewing on her gum while holding her clipboard. Her sharp eyeliner slices into your ego as she continues with the uncomfortable blank stare while mindlessly writing something on the adoption papers. “Yeah, don't worry.” You dismiss before sticking a testing finger into the cage. The cocker spaniel puppy eagerly licks your pointer finger before barking and running laps around her keddle.

“No, I'm for real. She lives to cause chaos.” The young woman shrugs and tugs at the sleeves of her sweater.

You dismiss her warnings with a shrug before standing up straight and nod. “I’ll take…”

“Bella.” The young woman finishes your sentence before handing you an pen and the clipboard with the adoption forms.

“Yes. Bella.”

“Congratulations, you adopted a friend.” She monotonously announces and hands you a package. “Puppy pads. You'll thank me.” She huffs, grabbing the clipboard and writing a couple things down on your documents.

And here you are. In Central Park in your Hello Kitty pajama bottoms with a loose sweatshirt that is too stretched out. Your hands rest on your hips while looking down at your puppy. She only looks up at you with small whimpers filling the space. “Did you pee or poop?” You exhales, putting your hands down in defeat. Bella only whines out a sound of distaste, tilting her head to the side.

“Isn't this what you wanted? You won't go on the puppy pads.” You question the tiny canine as if it could understand your words. She continued to look up at you with big eyes while whining.

“What could you possibly want?” You groan, covering your face in defeat. “You haven't pooped since yesterday!”

Through the crevices of your fingers, you look at Bella and see her back on her paws, her little tail wagging. A glint of mischief is in her eyes. “Don’t think about it” you mouth before her little legs bolt off. “Bella!” You exclaim and chase the small puppy immediately after. “Come back here!”

Bella races ahead, her excited barks shattering the tranquility of Central Park as she bounds through the autumn landscape. With each leap, she sends a cascade of crunchy, raked leaves spiraling into the air, creating a chaotic whirlwind around her. "Bella! No!" You shout, your voice mingling with the rustling leafage as you sprint after her, heart pounding against your ribs.

Her marathon comes to a close as Bella runs down a gentle slope in the park, captivated by the enticing aroma of sweet bananas wafting through the air. The puppy halts abruptly, her ears perked and her nose twitching with excitement as she nudges her damp, button-like nose against the young man's calf, eagerly pleading for a taste of the delicious snack he had at hand. The royal blue cap contrasted the grey sweatpants and sneakers he had on, making him stick out like a sore thumb, but it was enough to pinpoint where he was at the bottom of the steep hill.

“Hey, little one,” he chuckles, a warm smile spreading. He crouches down, extending his hand toward the playful pup. Bella's tail, wagging furiously, responds enthusiastically. She licks his fingers clean from the banana residue and lets out cheerful yaps before darting around him in joyful circles.

“Bella!” You shout, shuffling down the steep slope towards your pup and man. “You are in so much trouble, missy—” You exhale. Your words are immediately muted as you barrel into the man at full speed.

Almost out of a cartoon, you roll down and crash land on each other, leaving your puppy and personal belongings behind. Bella yaps before the sound is muffled, still trailing behind you and the stranger down to the flat land.

“I am so sorry…” You stumble about, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. “It's okay, nena.” He groans and props himself up on his elbows. “You okay?” He exhales. His trembling hands cups your cheek, brushing away any strands of baby hair away from your face. His touch is light, tracing your soft skin and brow. “I’m fine,” You pause and swallow dryly reducing the patchy spot in your throat. “Where’s Bella?”

The puppy's yaps filled the personal bubble between you as she jumped, her collars ringing from her name tag and leash.

“Does that answer your question?” he chuckles, his touch still gentle. But in all seriousness, no problems breathing or dizziness?” His tone is even and mellow, decompressing the chaotic mess you pushed him into. Quite literally. “I can breathe, but having two hundred-something pounds against my chest would be a counterintuitive statement. Please get off of me.” You exhale.

“Of course…” He scrambles off of you and pulls you up from the dead pile of leaves that cushioned the fall.

You dust off the brown and orange leaves that cling onto your pajama bottoms before squatting down to pick up Bella. “I am so sorry about that! Bella isn't used to the outdoors other than her potty time.”

He chuckles before scratching the back of her floppy ears. “Puppy training?” He questions before pulling his hand away and adjusting his baseball hat. “Yeah? The shelter says she has no self-control.” You again swallow and squat down to fish the end of the leash. “It's been delayed because I'm working two jobs now, and it's hard to squeeze it in.”

“Right…” He acknowledges. His eyes wander down, taking in your squat formation. The pajama bottoms didn't do any justice to conceal as they only amplified your figure more, more specifically, the swell of your rear. His eyes stay glued on “you” momentarily, and he looks away when you get back up from fishing the collar through the dead leaves on the grass.

“Once again, I am sorry.” Your cheeks flush a bright red, your ears joining your cheeks. His eyes dart around, looking at a tree from the distance instead of the swell of your rear begging to be looked at. "Right." He stops and clears his patchy throat, his mind running to think of another disinterested response. "I mean, I understand." He nods, shifting his weight on his two feet. "My dog, Apollo, was like that when he was a puppy." He nods, mindful of the pace.

You nervously laugh, attempting to save the conversation from being anything but awkward and suffocating. "That's so funny..." You mumble before hoisting the small puppy up into your arms more. "Well, I better get going, Bella needs to have breakfast."

"Wait," His voice is coarse and parched before he clears his throat and calls out again.

"Let's start over again. I'm Miguel." He stammers, a rosy tone in his cheeks appearing despite the lip of his cap barely hiding his features. You turn to face him again and smile, introducing yourself.

"I would like to get to know you better."

Seeing a German Shepherd smelling the cocker spaniel pulled your heartstrings before the small puppy barks at the giant dog, causing the canine to retreat—the puppy yaps before chasing the big dog around the mellow park. You giggle before crossing your arms over your chest. “You aren't wrong, Apollo is a gentle giant…” You sigh, seeing Bella continue the chase with her floppy ears bouncing.

“Told you,” Miguel chuckles, tilting the cap upwards. “He loves playing with puppies.”

His eyes move to you, lingering on you for a moment, and his gaze returns to the two canines playing. The giant canine returns to Miguel's side, with Bella yapping around the large canine. "Enough, Bella." You pick up the puppy, latch the pink leash on her collar, and place her gently on the grass. Bella looks up with pleading eyes, and a slight whine from the back of her throat is audible. "C'mon, it's time for breakfast. Say bye to Apollo." You demand the pup.

"I'll see you around, " you ask Miguel. Of course..." He exchanges a soft smile, a soft glisten in his eyes, seeking more. "C'mon..." You encourage the pup, tugging the leash. With a slight whine, she follows behind, her floppy ears bouncing with every step, leaving the two new companions behind in Central Park.

Bella turns around, her tiny body buzzing with excitement as she yaps joyfully. She barks a cheerful melody in the autumn air. She trots eagerly by your side, her fluffy tail wagging like a little flag, radiating pure happiness. Her moist button nose twitches as it delicately inhales the diverse scents drifting around, a mix of freshly cut grass and the tantalizing aroma of hot dogs sizzling on nearby grills.

Often, she glances up at you with wide, sparkling eyes, her expression a blend of playful mischief and undeniable affection. The park around her bustles with life, children’s giggles filling the air. The puppy's heart swells in excitement, anticipating the next unplanned playdate.

It wouldn't be the last time she saw Miguel or Apollo. There was going to be another next time. In her small conscious, she sensed an extended stay from the companions.

tag list:

@yougavemeyourheartyouknow @opaloharas @hyjionie @zaunsin @kavimoo @keiva1000 @slushycoookie

[nerd-who-likes-cats]

Akanda Tsum! Or wait... is it Akedya? ... Siam Tsum!

@rakiah has an adorable set of twins. Which twin is this? They won't tell you.

I considered doing both twins, but I realized there could be even more opportunity for chaos if it was just one, but nobody knew which twin it was. (Story under cut)

Akanda and Akedya were sitting outside ramshackle dorm when the portal opened, waking Kat, who they'd been intending to mess with while he slept. They looked up at the bright light as tsum after tsum fell from the sky. Akanda spotted one with red hair set to land nearby, and the two gave chase. They lept after the terrified tsum, only to bonk into each other as the red-haired tsum fled into the undergrowth.

The pair were lashing their tails, ready to pursue it, when they spotted something in another bush, a small pair of ears poking out for just a moment. They darted over, only to find the bush empty, and a small tail peaking down from the branches of a nearby tree. Each time they caught up, it was somewhere different, and they chased this catlike tsum onto the roof and around the chimney until-

Crash! The two boys had chased the tsum over a rotting piece of roof that couldn't hold their weight, and fell into the building. A laughing purr came from above and they looked up to see blue eyes much like their own looking down at them.

As the twins and the tsum locked eyes, a bond and agreement was silently made.

"Let's get out of here before they realize the roof's collapsed" said Akanda.

"I'll carry you since our legs are longer" Akedya told the tsum. And the trio were off.

Once a distance away, the tsum leapt out of Akedya's arms, and dashed off. Right under the feet of some poor guy running across the yard. Noting this man had hair in his face and likely couldn't see well anyways, the twins took the chance to try to show up the tsum and each other, until Akanda saw Rook in the distance watching them, and correctly suggested they run off again before getting dragged back to Pomefiore.

Their phones buzzed at the same time. And they checked to see: "Students, it has come to my attention that the tsums have returned to Night Raven College. All students who encounter one of these small creatures must bring it to the headmages office posthaste."

"This'll be fun" Akanda smirked

"Let's go meet the other tsums" Akedya grinned.

The three were the first to arrive, and Crowley looked between the two of them and the tsum "do you know which of you this tsum takes after?" He asked in a tired voice.

All three smiled at him.

"Its hard to say" said Akanda

"You'll need to know though, won't you" added Akedya.

"Yes I need to know. It's school policy that tsum-alikes are the responsibility of those they take after so I need to know who I'm assigning it to!" Crowley frowned at them.

"Can you tell us apart in the first place though?" One of the boys asked innocently.

"Of course I can!" Crowley lied.

"Then you should have no trouble telling who this tsum takes after" with how the twins moved about, even someone who could identify the pair would have trouble keeping track of who was who.

"This isn't a game." The headmaster said sternly "I am your headmage, so you are going to answer my question."

"Well..." Akanda began.

"Its hard to tell for us too..." Akedya said with a smile.

"But there's an easy way if only somebody could catch him" Akanda lied.

"Yes" Akedya continued "Akedya has a mole on his back left shoulder that I don't, if you caught the tsum we could check."

"But we haven't been able to catch it ourselves. It'll follow us, but won't let us touch it." Akanda shrugged.

Crowley looked at the tsum, which was knocking things off his desk. And the twins sat back to watch what would unfold next. This would be fun.

[sweet-caress-of-twilight]

Disney Animated Canon Dashboard Simulator

🦁 a-mighty-king Follow

How do I look?

🦌 a-life-in-the-woods Follow

mid

🦁 a-mighty-king Follow

That's why your mom is dead

🦌 a-life-in-the-woods Follow

ik you're not talking when your uncle killed your dad 💀be so fr rn

🦁 a-mighty-king Follow

moots you have 24 hours to unfollow a-l*fe-in-t*e-w**ds

🧞‍♂️ phenomenal-cosmic-power Follow

geez, wanna buy some vowels?

🦁 a-mighty-king Follow

how dare you say we piss on the poor

#classism tw

🧞‍♂️ phenomenal-cosmic-power Follow

I'm not classist, my best pal is a street rat

🐭 rescue-aid-society-official Follow

Actually, we prefer the term "mouse" - Bernard

🧞‍♂️ phenomenal-cosmic-power Follow

I don't believe it, another "piss on the poor" moment? I'm not even talking about you dawg 💀

⚡️ b01t Follow

...

🥖 one-jump-ahead Follow

actually I wouldn't mind being pissed on

🌺 jasmine-like-the-flower Follow

AYO?

���� milo-thatch Follow

#aladdin horny heritage posts

💛 more-than-this-provincial-life Follow

h

💪 roughly-the-size-of-a-barge Follow

I SHOWED YOU MY COCK IN DMS PLEASE RESPOND

💪 roughly-the-size-of-a-barge Follow

I CAN'T BELIEVE I'VE BEEN BLOCKED BY BELLE ANYWAYS DNI IF YOU STAN THE BEAST

🕯 b3-0ur-gu3st Follow

#THE BEAST SWEEP

💪 roughly-the-size-of-a-barge Follow

shut your goofy ass up before I melt you

😜 yaa-hoo-hoo-hooey Follow

Gawrsh, did someone mention me?

🐤 d0n4ld-duck Follow

hes not talking about you you big palooka

😜 yaa-hoo-hoo-hooey Follow

Actually, you're supposed to put an apostrophe in the word "he's"

🐤 d0n4ld-duck Follow

GAHHHHHHH WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA?

💚 theboywhowouldntgrowup Follow

adults are so annoying like go pay your taxes grandpa 🙄

🏴‍☠️ theworldsmostfamouscrook Follow

You are a minor who knows nothing about the world. You are the ugly one here. I can make YOU shut up but I suggest you one thing. You don't want to deal with a devil like me.

🐊 tiktokcrok Follow

Hi

🏴‍☠️ theworldsmostfamouscrook Follow

AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

🏴‍☠️ theworldsmostfamouscrook Follow

moots please tw crocodiles

💎 m4d4m-m3dus4 Follow

BOO

🏴‍☠️ theworldsmostfamouscrook Follow

THIS IS THE LAST STRAW MEDUSA!!!!!11 I'M BREAKING THE MUTUAL!!1111!!

🐚 p00r-unf0rtun4t3-s0u1s Follow

And this, my darlings, is why we don't put our triggers out in public

💜 m3g4r4 Follow

Hercules save me

💜 m3g4r4 Follow

Hercules

💜 m3g4r4 Follow

save me Hercules

💪 zer02hero Follow

Never fear, I'm on my way!

💪 roughly-the-size-of-a-barge Follow

Nice pfp bro

💪 zer02hero Follow

254.421.81.132

🛐 a-righteous-man Follow

uhm,,,,this entire dashboard is rife with sin and degeneracy. Do you all have no shame?

🐐 esme-and-djali Follow

fiwruehfiuerhgiuerhughgeuyrhg

🐐 esme-and-djali Follow

Sorry that was Djali typing anyway OP literally tried to burn me at the stake for being Romani????

🛐 a-righteous-man Follow

And I would do it again to cleanse the world of your wickedness! You flaunt your heresy and expect us to applaud?

🐐 esme-and-djali Follow

how about you keep that energy when you look in the mirror? cause last i checked, your obsession with me wasn’t exactly “holy”

🛐 a-righteous-man Follow

You dare speak to me of obsession? I shall have you blocked and reported from this webbed site!

🐐 esme-and-djali Follow

lol ok

🛐 a-righteous-man Follow

DO NOT SPEAK TO ME THAT WAY! YOU SHALL ANSWER TO DIVINE JUDGMENT!

🐐 esme-and-djali Follow

frollo got termed lmao sucks to suck

🔥 officialhades Follow

that sucks, i was gonna invite him to my place for a BBQ

🔮 th3-gre4t-and-powerful Follow Why do I always wake up to the chaos of this dashboard? I need coffee and Kuzco's head on a platter.

🦙 realemperorkuzco Follow

tf is u doing ur really killing my groove here :(

🔮 th3-gre4t-and-powerful Follow

Get off of my dash.

🦙 realemperorkuzco Follow

u havent blocked me tho

🎢 pull-teh-lever Follow Uh, Yzma, are we still making spinach puffs for dinner? Asking for a friend.

🩶 bear-nessities Follow

Hi guys, this is my first post here! Good vibes only!

📖 milo-thatch Follow

Unfortunately, there appears to be a spelling error in your username. It is supposed to be "necessities."

🩶 bear-nessities Follow

🤓🤓🤓🤓

🏄🏾‍♀️ 0hana-means-family Follow

Guys, I have a theory: I think Baloo and Little John are the same person. I mean, have we ever seen them online at the same time?

🦊 stealfr0mtehrich Follow

You know, Little John did get termed recently....

🦊 g00dby3-may-seem-4ever Follow

Nice pfp

🦊 stealfr0mtehrich Follow

Thanks, I stole it from you

#oodelally

😴 br1arr0se Follow

🦁 a-mighty-king Follow

Um this is extremely offensive to people who have been put under sleeping spells??????

🍎 myprincecame Follow

Excuse me, Simba, but Aurora has been putting under a sleeping spell, as have I. Please don't spread negativity here :(

🍎 myprincecame Follow

plsushthepostistreu - Sleepy

🦁 a-mighty-king Follow

you know that by being sleepy, you're appropriating the culture of those who have been put under sleeping spells?????

🥖 one-jump-ahead Follow

so...just fuck being tired, I guess?

🍎 myprincecame Follow

Please no profanity on my posts, Aladdin :(

🎩 un81rthd4y Follow

anyone in this thread smoke weed

[moonspirit]

Jealous aruani are fun and all, but...what if it's their friend that's the reason for the jealousy??? No love triangles.

Annie suddenly feels a twinge of irritation when she sees Pieck say something to Armin and they laugh together. Or maybe Armin overhears gossip about how Annie Leonhart and Connie Springer look so cute together. The next time he sees Connie, his stomach twists. And it's terrible!

Considering how Armin and Annie both have self-esteem issues...well, I can see how that could happen. Irritation, doubt, jealousy, and self-loathing for feeling that way about a friend. it's just painful, stupid and awkward. I have no idea how they will solve this😗

Hello jealousy anon! As promised, and thank you for the ask, it made me laugh xD

Because of-fucking-course there's nobody more capable of causing problems for Aruani off more than their very own family xD If you ask me, outsiders don't have the type of talent the other four have in creating misunderstandings and unnecessary chaos xD Plot-required-3rd-party-love-interest who? Move over, here's Connie the Springer man!

At first it's all quite unintentional. Connie spends time with Annie because Circumstances and Coincidence and hardly notices Armin's watery puppy eyes gazing at him from a depressing corner. It's not like Armin ever says anything out loud either because of course, he's happy! He's happy Annie has a silly friend that makes her laugh and forget that she's awkward and possibly frightening around people. He's glad Connie comes prepackaged with a whole lot of shitty jokes that happen to tickle her. He's really fucking glad Connie treats Annie like he treats everyone else!

But. Connie can also... dance. Really well. Like the guy's got those moves and can easily take Annie for a nice spin. He also... makes her laugh, like... a lot? A lot lot? Hm.. has Annie ever laughed like that with me? Uh... yeah, nevermind that, um- oh god, Connie's been looking pretty nice lately in those suits and he's rather good with the whole easy-fashion thing and uh- well shit, it's Connie, he's my friend, he's not- no, I mean, that photo in the newspapers was just an accidental shot, of course Annie was just laughing at his bad joke but well... she did look really happy with him and, oh shit--

Man.

Pieck on the other hand, doesn't fuck with people more than necessary. I don't actually see her getting *too* close with Armin but they do become very good friends! They have a lot in common, (for example music) and vibrate on the same atomic level of "yeah this is wrong and backhanded and probably will get us arrested in 18 countries but lets do it hehe". Hc that they probably get off to a slightly rocky start as Pieck doesn't put much faith in Armin's "naivete" and harbours resentment for his blowing up of Liberio's port, but as time goes by, they grow closer!

Maybe... too much closer for someone's liking 💀

Because okay? Annie gets it, she finds politics too boring and her takes end up being too cynical and skeptical in the room. Technically, she's glad Armin has someone in Pieck who will humour his ideas with a generous (but nice) dash of realism. Also, they enjoy picking out records together and she often finds them nodding their heads to a new tune once home.

She's glad, okay?

She is, she really is-

*sound of a thigh being stabbed followed by sounds of Reiner screaming*

Pieck is a cheerful girl tho 🥲

On a serious note, both Aruani are going to feel like total crap about this jealousy tho. Because as you said, it's their friends, their literal family who they share a lot of time and space with, and if anything could be clear it's that none of them want to see Aruani unhappy. So its not real, it's not anything to worry about, it's all just in their heads-

And yet.

Tbh the extra funny bit about this is gonna be when Connie and Pieck realize what they're doing to their poor lemonheads xD

"What! We're making you jealous?! wHAaT?? ... Hell YEAH, LET'S TURN IT UP!"

🥲🥲🥲🥲

I mean what else did you expect lol, Pieck and Connie are that duo who are going to derive more entertainment from their very own organic, homegrown family-drama than the moving pictures being shown in the town-square.

Suddenly it's all: "HEHE Armin, I bought Annie CAKES, see? FIVE Cakes! FiVE delICIOUS cakes and *I* am going to give it to her! Me!"

and: "Annniieeeeeeee~~ Oh no, why the long face this morning? Btw did you know Armin wants kids? Like a lot of kids? He told me- oh, he didn't tell you? Hehe I thought you'd be the first to know hehehehehe"

Their approaches to fanning this dumpster fire are different 😌

Their solution when things get too Sad?? Lock Aruani up in a room. Always ends well.

[weirdly-specific-but-ok]

STAGED LIVESTREAM SUMMARY S1

BABYGIRLS, BITCHBOYS, AND BOYCOTTERS OF THE BINARY, HELLO MAGGOTS OF MINE. Can you tell it is past 5 am and I just took my sleep meds? We all know how well that goes for my post-making prowess *stares at my good omens part 1 update on Neil's blog*.

BUT that is a regret for post-sleep me to have. When the sun rises I'll go to bed, it's a fucked up sleep schedule but hey the sun and I can't be up at the same time we'd all combust from the hotness. Oh I'm going to regret this so much. But I feel like it's only in this state that I can do justice to that goddamn livestream.

STRAP IN BECAUSE THIS IS A LONG POST AND I WILL NOT CUT IT BECAUSE I WANT EVERYONE WHOSE DASH IT LANDS ON TO YEARN FOR SPIRTUAL EYE-BLEACH.

Soooooo without further ado, or should I say much ado about nothing (see I can reference Shakespeare):

The stream starts, and we are witness to David Tennant being pointy and chaotic, Michael Sheen being adorable and enraged, and Simon looking close to tears at all times, which is a fucking mood.

I am witness to a disturbing degree of thirst every time Michael turns to the side. Michael in profile, they all swoon. I am concerned.

I'm reminiscing about my lockdown memories. David looking confused in a hoodie is very fucking relatable. Once, I started sobbing because my wardrobe looked like a wardrobe. It was a time for us all.

However, everyone else is busy yelling about different showings of Hamlet, Richard the Something Number, etc etc. No one is paying attention to me and my poor poor memories.

Now, I read original Shakespeare when I was like 13, .I like him. But I do not have this level of expertise. FRIENDS, ROMANS, COUNTRYMEN, LEND ME YOUR EARS, I beg.

No one pays attention. I am sad.

I go off to sulk.

By which I mean I actually pay attention to the show. So maggots reading this and wanting an actual summary, this is the only time you're going to get it, because it was when I was watching.

Basically, Simon (I'm gonna refer to their characters as them but for the record it's scripted, I'm being so considerate to the people who're here for an actual summary) digs himself into a hole, Michael does not like him and makes that very known, David offers to get Simon out of the hole and in the process digs both of them into an even deeper hole, and Samuel L Jackson (is that his name) and Michael become unlikely allies to get revenge on David.

Rather than an apology dance, though, David has to stand in a corner. Meanwhile, Georgia and Anna are the only ones actually functioning at their lives, Michael gets blackmailed into servitude by his neighbour, and Simon holds back tears. Judi Dench is involved (that's her name right).

Now as you can see, I am paying full attention to the show until this point. At this fucking point though, I make the poor choice of opening the stream chat.

@thescholarlystrumpet's profile picture is a certain angel. Focused on... the lower half.

Everyone in the chat is talking about Aziraphale's thighs.

This derails. Everyone is now talking about Aziraphale's dick.

Strumpet insists vehemently that the thighs are the focus.

Everyone says the thighs are only there for framing purposes.

You know me, maggots. I'm drawn to chaos, shark to blood. So I end my sulk at not being the centre of attention, and delightedly hop into the chat.

Someone (@vitrilol it was you, I believe? until confirmation, I'll refer to them as Ari) says they wish someone liked their thighs.

So naturally I say I like your thighs.

Oh, swoon, the flirting, you maggots would be scandalised. I'm quite the charmer. It is delectable. We take it to the bedroom. The bedroom is the stream chat. There are gasps.

Another maggot says that this is simply mine and Ari's room, and they're just in it. So then I tell them, why simply stand and watch? They should join in.

They say they have mixed experience with threesomes. I ask who said we're capping it at three?

They are far more comfortable with the idea of an orgy. An orgy has now been initiated. Some people express concern. Others are entirely on board.

Some say they are afraid they're too old for the said orgy, they're old enough to be my aunt. I say nonsense, you wanna orgy, you orgy.

Ari takes this opportunity to wonder if I'm old enough to be their aunt. They then hasten to assure me that they like MILFs.

I find this hysterical, because I am a nineteen year old guy whom people have said gives off tiktok fuckboy energy in real life. I make that fact known. I'm glad that being a man and being 19 does not exclude me from being a MILF, however.

At this point, Ari points out that at least people find me attractive, even if it's a tiktok fuckboy way. I am unsure that being attractive is worth giving off tiktok fuckboy energy. (Thank god, this is not my only vibe. I also have unkept stinky teenage boy, witch and Jane Austen debutante princess, but weird).

Someone else says that hey, I'm closer in age to their son than them. I am about to ask whether their son is eligible and how many pounds he has a year, when they add that the son is 12. I tell them I am glad I did not ask those things. They agree.

The show is still going on. Someone is gasping on Georgia's phone, and I assume it is labour (I learned my lesson about assuming orgasms after the good omens pilot). I am correct. A maggot says that labour and orgasms do not sound the same.

I'm a clueless aspec boy. I don't know about labour or orgasms.

There is some debate then about whether screaming in pain is a difference or a possible common ground for those two things.

The orgy is expanding. Strumpet has to step in to say that while thirsting about the actors is entirely fine, please everyone refrain from sexting in the stream chat.

I feel like I should state here for the record that no one was sexting.

Well. Okay. That's a dubious stretch of the truth, but I love dubiously stretching the truth.

David abuses chairs and beds and his limbs with his posture. I relate.

The neighbour nearly dies, then does not.

The internet gives up on the stream. This is fair. Poor internet.

But while the video is lagging, someone mentions that one of their favourite fanfic authors passed away.

Comfort is offered, as is my brand of aggressively gentle love. Basically DON'T FUCKING APOLOGISE, sweetheart, your grief is valid. Strumpet says how in case she should disappear she's given a friend the authority to post her WIPs as a precautionary measure. And now people are crying.

I ask Strumpet to pause the stream. We all get really fucking emotional about the beauty of writing, of art enduring past the lives of the artists, and whether the author knew how much they were loved. This is getting really sad, but in a beautiful way.

We go back to the stream. Who knows what happens? Not me.

But what matters to me isn't what's on the stream, it's what's in the chats. The people I get to talk to. The hope that I can, at the very least, ensure that they are never, ever unheard. That they get the love they deserve.

I'm too sleepy to reread that. Meds have kicked in. Eyes shut time. If I fucked up somewhere in the post do forgive me maggots of mine, it's past 6 am which means the sun has risen and I need to go the fuck to sleep till noon is over at least.

I love you. Love love love. Send me anything you want anytime. My ask box is open. Go wild. You will not be fucking unheard. Yeah? Good. I love you, again, for good measure.

@howmanyholesinswisscheese ya proud of me, dad?

[wyrdle]

I was compelled to draw the stupid old people dslfkjgnsd.

Anyway, AU where the profs actually stick around and eventually become teachers at the Academy I guess. My dumb wild brain idea was that Clavell had the bright idea of "Since the time machine project is dashed y’know what we should do? We shgould all go work at the Academy.” Jacq was pulled along on similar train of thought (I think he only joined the tera orb project a little later as a trainee, but wasn’t close enough to the profs to hear about their time machine thingy unlike Clavell).

Clavell and Turo are very much on the same page of being old men who are shit at modern day culture. Sada on the other hand...  she revels in their dumbness. Poor Arven lol. I’m thinking they might be teaching assistants/only teaching part time. Maybe working on experiments that eventually lead to Koraidon and Miraidon being lab created rather than time machine pulled.

They basically take up the currently empty other half of Clavell’s office, the labs! And yes I ship all three of them together lmao. Imagine the chaos lkjsdfg. Also the shenanigans to be had there after school hours, if you get my meaning lol. I’m sorry lsdfkjsd. My nsfw twitter account will hold more poly junk in the future I guess (No minors please.)

Also FYI I’m running with my idea that the AI professors we see are actually just their youthful appearances frozen in time. In present day, the actual profs would be aging, sort of looking like this.

[astarionslittlejuicebox]

On Borrowed Time

Author: @astarionslittlejuicebox

Imagine: While the party traverses the Underdark, a fight takes an unexpected turn as Y/N falls during combat. How does the party react and feel when they realize their favorite traveling companion’s heart stops? 

Pairing: Astarion x F!Drow!Reader

Trigger warnings: Fluff, minor spoilers, suggestive themes, partying, language, mentions of death, mentions of fighting, blood, potentially graphic content

Word Count: 2280

Side Notes: Y/N = your name

The day had started off just fine as the entire party had been fortunate enough to navigate through the Underdark’s chaos and confusing tunnels just fine with the help of my knowledge from growing up in the Underdark. We had encountered a few exploding spores and some hook horrors, but the party was able to quickly handle all of the challenges. The party had done fairly well up until they were tasked to combat the duergar in the abandoned city by the myconid leader. Y/N, who had taken some damage during the battle with the hook horrors, told everyone they’d be fine after a short rest. 

Perhaps the chaos that ensued next could be blamed on too many people: Astarion was a bit trigger-happy, Karlach’s allergies made her sneeze at the most inopportune moment, Shadowheart was still positioning herself, and Y/N had (unknowingly) picked the wrong spot to be in. The second Astarion’s arrow released the same time Karlach’s sneeze alerted the duergar and the undead servants they had with them. As luck would have it, Y/N was the first face they saw, and the first person they targeted. Poor Y/N couldn’t get her bearings fast enough before they surrounded her. The rest of the party tried their best to get the attention off of their favorite wizard, but their attempts were futile as the duergar and undead laid attack after brutal attack. The duergar’s war hammers laid blow after merciless blow into the drow as the dead's claws ripped and tore at the young dark elf’s flesh. Astarion felt his heart stop as she called out his name before another relentless claw struck the drow and her body crumbled to the ground. While Astarion couldn’t see the blood, he could smell the sweet metallic aroma as it began to quickly fill the air. The vampire spawn would never admit it aloud, but the thought of Y/N not smiling at him or teasing him made Astarion feel a bit panicked as he barked at Shadowheart to get to the drow as he released another arrow into the eye of duergar who was posed to strike the fallen drow.

“I’ve got the duergar!” Karlach yelled before she dashed towards the group of enemies, and Shadowheart moved to try and get Y/N some healing. 

“Astarion, we have to get her out of there! If I heal her now, they’re just going to keep hitting her.” Shadowheart’s voice sounded as distressed as the group felt with their favorite party member down.

“I’m working on it.” Astarion growled back as Karlach slashed and killed two of the three duergar, clearing a path for Astarion to be able to reach Y/N. However, the group had not anticipated one of the undead deciding against attacking the fire-engulfed barbarian and opting for landing the killing blow to their drow instead. For a moment, the world moved in slow motion for the party as Karlach took a blow to the flank by the last remaining duergar and Astarion hesitated as his hearing had confirmed one of his worst fears: Y/N’s heart wasn’t rhythmically beating within her rib cage. The edges of Astarion’s vision turned red as he ran to slash at the undead who ended her life, but both of his attacks missed as tears blurred his vision. The vampire spawn cursed as frustration grew in his mind. Why had they not been more careful? The high elf thought to himself.

Thankfully, the other two party members were not as distracted as Astarion was at the moment because the flaming tiefling single-handedly finished the last duergar and the two undead servants, and Shadowheart pulled out her scroll of Revivify.

“Heads up, Astarion, she’s going to need you.” Shadowheart said as bright yellow light engulfed the drow’s body before Y/N suddenly appeared next to him, gasping for air and about to fall over. Astarion’s reflexes were faster as he caught her in his arms. He quickly gave her a look over, but the world seemed to stop when her ruby eyes met his gaze.

“Judging…” She started softly. “…by the look on your face…” The drow took another pained breath. “…and how I feel…” A grimace had graced the drow’s face before she could finish her sentence. 

“Hush now, darling. We can talk more once we are at camp.” Astarion’s reassuring voice came out ever-so-quietly. “Do you think you can walk?” He asked as Karlach and Shadowheart approached the pair. 

“You gave us quite the scare there, Y/N.” Karlach’s voice was not its usually chipper tone. “I’d offer to carry you, but I’m afraid it would hurt worse than the duergar.” This comment brought a small smile to the drow’s face. 

“I should be able to do so.” Y/N shuffled on her feet, but her knees gave out. Astarion was quick to support her weight. 

“Hasa-Evo.” Shadowheart said as she laid a hand on the drow’s bloody arm. Another rush of bright light surrounded the dark elf as some of the wounds magically closed. Some color had returned to the drow’s face as she straightened herself to stand on her own two feet. She gave the cleric a small smile.

“Thank you. I should be able to make it to camp now.” Even though the drow had appeared better, Astarion was still hesitant to remove his hand from her back or very far from reaching her. Turns out his instincts were right as the drow went to take a step and stumbled, and Astarion wrapped her in his embrace.

“I shall assist you, my dear. I’d rather not see you get any more injuries.” Astarion’s low voice made Y/N look him in the eyes before she whispered to him.

“Careful, Astarion, people might start to think you actually care about me.” Unbeknownst to Y/N, Astarion’s keen ears picked up the sound as her heart raced in her chest as she held his intense gaze. An unfamiliar emotion to Astarion had taken hold in the ruby eyes staring at him, but he shifted her in his arms to support her. 

“Let’s get you to camp.” Shadowheart said as she looked between the two elves then shared a knowing look with Karlach as the party set their course for camp.

The air at camp hung heavy with nothing but the sounds of the Underdark that night as Y/N tended to her wounds in her tent. Astarion, who had helped her to her tent, had retreated to his tent shortly afterward and had not come out since. This had left the rest of the party to sit quietly as Shadowheart and Karlach recalled the events for those fortunate enough to not be present during the combat. Everyone worried about their drow companion, but some people were worried about how their vampire spawn companion was coping with today’s events. Astarion thought he was smart and cunning—that no one could tell he was falling for their drow companion; however, Shadowheart and Karlach saw how he practically shattered when Y/N fell to the ground.  As much as the traveling party wanted to intervene, they knew that Y/N and Astarion would have to deal with the situation themselves.

Y/N did not leave her tent for most of the night, nor did many of her traveling companions bother her. Shadowheart had stopped by with a plate of warm food to check on how the drow’s wounds were doing. Although the cleric didn’t stay long, Y/N was grateful that they had stopped by, but the drow was worried about another one of her companions: Astarion. She just couldn’t shake the image of his heartbroken face when she came too, and it broke her heart. The wizard had high hopes that Astarion would come to see her tonight for his nightly taste, and she hoped to talk to him then about the whole situation. She cared deeply for the elf, but she had no idea how he felt about her. Only time would tell if he was coming to see her, so Y/N grabbed her newest novel and started reading.

The rest of the evening passed by quietly and uneventfully for the entire camp. After everyone had gone to bed for the night, Astarion emerged from his tent. The vampire spawn had been trying to distract himself from the entire situation and now was his time to emerge to a quiet camp, where no one could ask him any questions about how he felt regarding the day’s events. He did, however, want to check on his favorite traveling companion. As he neared Y/N’s tent though, he noticed the lights of her lanterns still flickering in her tent. Astarion ever-so-slightly lifted the corner of her tent cover and found his drow companion asleep with a book still in her hand as though she fell asleep while reading it. A small smile found its place on Astarion’s lips at the sight of her.

Could it be that she was trying to stay awake for me? He thought to himself, but movement from inside the tent caught his attention. Y/N’s limbs were jerking as if she was having a bad dream, and Astarion was about to take his leave when she jerked awake with panic evident on her face as she clutched her chest. 

“No!” She yelled before she opened her eyes and looked around frantically as if she expected a fight to be happening. Instead, she found the white-haired vampire at her tent flap. Astarion could see as the drow’s muscles physically relaxed, but he could hear how fast the organ in her chest was moving the blood in her veins. “Oh, Astarion, you scared me.” Judging by the look on the high elf’s face, he had been standing there long enough to know that was a lie. “Did you come to feed on me?”

“Yes, but I—“ Astarion’s gaze shifted slightly and he looked into the drow’s eyes. “—I also wanted to check on you and make sure that you were okay.” His words were spoken so softly that the drow’s ears almost missed the last half of his sentence. 

“I must’ve given you quite the scare today.” Y/N’s voice sounded remorseful, which made Astarion stare at her in disbelief. “I should’ve been more careful. I should’ve known they would go for that spot; I could’ve gone to the ledge—“ The pale elf’s lips on hers stopped the rambling coming from Y/N. A gentle hand moved some hair out of her face when he pulled back. 

“You couldn’t have known what was going to happen today.” His words were soft and reassuring as he stared intensely into her eyes. “The important thing is that you are still here. We still have to find the Grymforge and kill Nere, but you’re still here to do that. I would have a hard time finding another pet as dear as you.” Astarion watched Y/N’s worry melt off her face as a look of admiration settled on her face, and a small smile graced her lips.

“You’re right. I am still here.” Her eyes danced as they looked over Astarion’s face. “So are you. We’ve still got a lot of work ahead of us too, but I—“ The drow’s eyes paused their search as they landed on his lips before she looked back into his eyes. “—I am glad to have you by my side.” The vampire spawn felt his cheeks grow warm under her intense gaze. 

“I am glad to be here. Almost dying with you beats living with Cazador any day.” A lighthearted chuckle erupted from the drow and made the high elf smile. He was growing quite fond of the sound of her laughter. 

“I’m sure it does.” She smiled at him. “Thank you for coming to see me.” 

“Of course. I had to make sure my pet was faring okay.” Astarion smiled back at her as he gently brushed a strand of hair from her face. “I shall let you rest tonight, my dearest. But do me a favor? Try to keep your blood inside your body; it is harder to feed when it is outside where it belongs.” The ruby eyes of his drow companion rolled in their socket at his comment, but he was truly glad that she was okay. “I shall let you sleep tonight. You’ll need all your strength for tomorrow.” He went to stand up, but the drow gently grabbed his hand. 

“Can you…stay with me tonight?” She gingerly asked. “If you’re comfortable staying. I don’t want to—“

“How sweet. Of course I’ll stay with you, pet.” The smile the vampire spawn gave her made her heart do a somersault in her chest. Neither of them wanted to admit how nice it was to be in the presence of the other, but if how fast Y/N fell asleep told Astarion anything—it was that he himself was in serious trouble. He had planned to stay with her long enough for her to fall asleep, but he changed his mind the moment she snuggled into his side. Red eyes studied the sleeping drow with wariness.  Could it be that the vampire’s plan to seduce the drow was working? He thought to himself. It certainly appears so, then why doesn’t he just leave? He was only going to stay till she was asleep, but here she is cuddled into his side and all he feels is…peace…. Perhaps, while he was free of Cazador, he could enjoy the time he has with her. After all, isn’t everyone on borrowed time? With his mind made up, Astarion made himself comfortable and relished in the warmth that the woman next to him brought him—both in body heat and to his heart.

[sinon36]

Echoes of Salvation: The Deal (Part I). Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley x afab reader  (Zombie AU)

Part II

The story starts after the dash.

Warnings: some gore, some mistakes, some bad writing (eh… we all have to start somewhere), not proof read, some independent woman surviving on her own without the need of help from men (cause I like self reliant women and people in general, they are a great inspiration to us all, really).

Disclaimer:

Dear readers,

Please be kind. This is my first fanfiction ever that I wrote and posted, so please be kind and overlook any potential inaccuracies, mistakes, grammatical errors as I’m not a professional writer and also English isn’t my native tongue. Though I have studied British English I am sure I haven’t really managed to accurately portray the British way of speaking, so please, feel free to point out anything that might poke you in the eye while reading this.

Also, I would like to tell you that this fan-fic is the love child of my obsession with our favourite masked man Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley, and my love for anything zombie apocalypse or world-ending alternate universe or actual universe. Tbh If I wasn’t a poor student I would probably be a prepper, just like Frank from HBO’s TLoU. Most likely will be. I’m a little weird like that, you’ll see more in the future.

To close this little rant, I hope you’ll enjoy it, even if it’s short, I would really like to continue this if you deem it worth it enough. This will probably be a slow-burn kind of romance: 1. because I’m a sucker for the kind of slow-burn strangers/enemies to lovers fanfics, and 2. because it’s more realistic, let’s calm the whore-y instincts and be reasonable people that don’t climb masked 6-feet-tall strangers like trees.

With everything said I do not own the Call of Duty character Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley (*whispers*Though I wish I did*) BUT I do own this piece of fanfic. Please don’t steal it. Repost it but please do give credit to other people’s work. You may notice some similarities to other fanfics, cause duh, I also read a lot of that, (isn’t that one of the incipient stages to becoming a fanfic writer?), but I would really like to give a shout out to the fanfic author that really inspired me to put fingers to keyboard and a fanfic into Tumblr, please, *drum rolls* a round of applause for @nsharks with her lovely fanfic ‘Bleeding Blue’. She’s really wonderful and you should really check her out.

Have fun reading and don’t forget to leave a comment or a heart. I wouldn’t mind suggestions of what to name Simons’ daughter. That would really make my day 😊

P.S. Sorry to all the fishing loving people out there, what I said was based on my impression of the fishing experience and should be taken with a grain of salt.

            Yours truly <3

Synopsis:

It’s been five years since the outbreak happened. Five years ago, in London, a terrorist group released a virus in the city center. 24 hours later, people start developing flu-like symptoms. 48 hours later the infected turn into mindless ghouls biting healthy people and spreading the infection. Everything happened so fast. The army came in and tried to contain the outbreak but soon chaos engulfed the whole country. You learn that similar attacks happened all over the world: New York, Beijing, Moscow, Athens, and Tokyo. City by city, the whole world is ending.

You survived thanks to your mid-twenties life crisis that made you move into a cottage house by the lake in Lake District. The land you own is surrounded by thick lush forest that offers perfect cover for the tiny brick house that is your safe haven. With a water source close, off-the-grid energy, and a garden full of plants, fruit trees chickens, and whatnot, you live a comfortable life tucked away, far from the dangers of the cities. You are so far out of reach that in the past years you only saw a handful of infected, survivors that traveled far to escape and distant neighbours that got infected in the towns nearby. You can’t remember the last time you saw another person. But you are used to your loneliness. The end of the world brought only a mild inconvenience, now that you can no longer order things online and watch movies on Netflix or HBO. But with a library full of books, a homestead to keep you active and your Border Collie companion, Bellamy, life is good. Life is peaceful.

One day, while you are out fishing, a masked man, armed to the teeth and carrying a young girl in his arms threatens to kill you if you don’t provide him with medicine for his sick daughter.                     

-

The sky is cloudy above but some sunbeams break through to warm the crisp air this fine early spring morning. It’s a good time for fishing now that the water is warmer, they come closer to the bank in search of food. It’s a boring task after you arrange all your tools and launch the line in the water. It’s a game of waiting and watching for any small tugs or movement of the neon-coloured fishing line. You picked up fishing after a couple of months into moving here, when everything was a mess and so many repairs and renovations had to be made around the house. The guy from the tutorials you used to watch on YouTube talked about the calmness and relaxation fishing brought to him. Maybe you weren’t cut out to stand all day on shore and gawk like an idiot for hours at the thin plastic line submerged in the lake water. But you cannot deny the proud feeling catching a fish brought to you when the line finally went taught.

You try and ward off the boredom and instead try to focus on the warmth that spring brings after months of endless cold. The birds are singing in trees, preparing nests for future offspring, and the lake is calm, with bubbles on the surface indicating the abundance of fish. Life is good. Bellamy enjoys sunbathing next to you rolling in a patch of grass. Everything is peaceful. Nothing really happens here anyway. You close your eyes basking in the good feeling that overtakes you.

A branch snapping behind you wakes you from the meditation you have fallen into. You raise and turn from where you are crouched over your equipment. You come face to face with a strange figure.         

‘Show me yer hands’ he tells you in a thick British accent, eyes focused on you and handgun aimed at your chest. He wears all black and a haunting white skull mask. He is tall, at least 6 feet tall, body poised to kill. In his other arm, you can see a little girl hugging his neck.

You slowly raise your hands. At your foot, Bellamy growls baring her teeth at the stranger sensing danger. You shush her grabbing her by the caller to keep her from attacking the armed man. You stand still watching in apprehension as the man studies you. You look at the ground where you left your backpack and your hatchet.

‘Don’t even think about it’ comes the gruff order. You nod trying to convey that you understand the situation. ‘There’s nothing in that bag worth a bullet’ you tell him in an even tone despite fear creeping down your spine. He hums in agreement. ‘And if you wanted to kill me you would’ve done it by now.’ He watches you like a hawk its prey. ‘So…’ you pause carefully measuring your words, ‘what it is that you want from me?’ he gestures you to take a few steps back and you drag Bellamy by her collar.

He kicks at the backpack spilling the contents. A bottle of water and a half-eaten sandwich, a hunting knife, and a rectangular box in which you keep the hooks, lures, fishing lines, and other small fishing equipment. He turns his gaze back at you and nods toward your dog. ‘Put a muzzle on it or I’ll shoot it’. your blood runs cold at the thought of losing your sole companion. You scramble to untie the scarf you keep tied around your wrist that you use to wipe away sweat from your forehead. You wrap the piece of cloth around the dog’s snout tight enough to not slip away. Next, the dark-clad man tells you to pack your fishing gear and collect your backpack, with one hand keeping it outstretched to the side and the other one grabbing at Bellamy’s collar guiding her forward. ‘Move. Eyes forward. Any sudden moves and I drop you.’

He walks a couple paces behind you. For how big he is you can barely hear him walk on the path. You can feel his gaze burning in the back of your head and the gun pointed at your back. As you start down the path you can make out the roof of your small house. Once you get at the gate you stop. ‘open it’ he instructs. ‘The key is in my right pocket’ you say slowly gesturing to said pocket. ‘Mhm,’ you hear him grunt. You slowly release Bellamy and fish for the key in your jacket’s pocket. You slowly take it out and put it in the keyhole turning it and opening the gate.

The familiar sight of your front garden does nothing to appease you in this situation. Bushes full of colourful flowers hug the narrow path toward the house. The wind catcher hung above your porch clinks melodically as a gust of warm wind catches on it. you take a few more steps on the stone path before you and you hear the gate closing behind you. What once was your safe space now traps you in with a stranger ready to shoot you or worse.

‘Tie the dog to that pole’ he orders you again. On your right, there is a small pole stuck in the ground. He throws a roll of paracord next to you. You don’t move at first. You had never tied Bellamy down before. You can’t even remember when you last put a leash on her. She likes to roam free and run around. The click of the gun behind you tells you that you have no choice. You drop the backpack and start to drag her to the pole. She tries to resist but you shush her and urge her to move. Once you finish tying her you turn towards the stranger. He nods towards the house and you start walking hands raised on either side of your head. Once you open the door he urges you inside.

‘Where do you keep the medicine?’ he grumbles urgently. ’Bathroom.’ you nod to the right of your living room. ‘Go get it!’ you don’t wait around you spring toward the white door. After a couple of minutes grabbing most of what you keep in the over-sink cabinet you emerge hands filled with gauze of all sizes and different bottled pills. You return to find the man placing the girl on the couch. She appears to be asleep. You almost forgot about her. She looks about 8-years-old. Brown hair is chopped short in a pixie cut. She’s wearing blue-washed jeans and a dark green hoodie that’s too big on her.

You watch as he peels the hoodie from her limp body. Underneath she wears a striped t-shirt, but what catches your attention is her left upper arm. Red stained gauze is wrapped around. You are still in your approach keeping a safe distance. ‘Was she bit?’ the words rush out in apprehension. From where he kneels next to her his eyes snap at you. ‘No’ he denies the implication of your words. ‘Put that on the table and go sit by the door’ You do as you're told eyes darting between the girl and the man. You drop everything on the coffee table and go sit by the entrance door hugging your knees. You watch as he works on bandaging the kid. Your eyes are glued to the girl’s arm.

Even though you lived so far out into the wilderness you saw pictures on the internet of bites from the infected. You read the posts of the survivors and heard the news broadcast on all channels. Then everything went quiet. The cable didn’t work and your phone had no signal. You knew shit hit the fan and that it was serious. Then, a few weeks later you saw your closest neighbour, Neil, an elderly farmer who lived about half a mile further up the river’s bank, growling and stumbling trying to catch Bellamy who was running scared towards you. You tried to talk him out of the trance-like state but to no avail. He kept stalking towards you, ready to take a bite out of you. You tried to tell him to keep his distance and warned him that you would protect yourself. The rest was a blur. You faintly remember grabbing the hatchet that you used to cut down logs for your stove. And then the struggle with the man, Bellamy barking, you crying out pleas for him to stop. In the cacophony of noises, you hit him with the blade right in the neck. The next thing you knew, your neighbour lay in a pool of dark blood hatchet still. It took you a while to register what you have done. You just killed a man. You couldn’t forget the way he lay there, on the gravel, hands stretched outwards bloodshot eyes staring emptily at the sky. That was the first time you encountered an infected. You distinctly remember the fear and adrenaline that took hold of you. The feelings that gripped your heart so tight and that made you take a life take over you as you watch the little girl, possibly infected, unconscious but on her way to the same madness that turned Neil into a savage monster all those years ago.                                                 

'She's feverish. You got meds or something to bring the fever down?' his question brings down from your rising panic at the thought of being stuck inside with a possible infected. ‘There should be some anti-inflammatory pills and some antibiotics. They are out of date but they could still work.' He grabs hold of the med kit you brought. He sorts through the drugs checking the expiration dates. When he comes across the antibiotics, he studies the pack carefully, his eyes darting back and forth from the label to the girl. 'How much can I give her?' he asks with a hint of concern his stern facade crumbling slightly.

You look at him unsure what to say. Those pills have been bought before the start of the outbreak. You doubt expired drugs have any effect anymore. You refrain from saying that though. He is stressed, he might take his anger on you. ‘She’s a kid, you mumble, so, about half of each.’ He carefully considers his next action. ‘She’ll need water to take them, you add from down the floor. And some food…’ He nods in understanding. ‘May I?’ you don’t know why you offer this stranger help. First, he disturbs you from catching dinner, next, he threatens to kill you and your dog, now he takes over your house and medicine. But you can recognize the desperation in his look, the way he fumbles with the packaging. He is a parent trying to save his kid. Even though you don’t have any of your own you recognize the parental instincts, the same ones you exert on Bellamy.

He looks at you unsure of what to do. He surrenders in defeat and nods at you to go on. You rise to your full height, which doesn’t add up to much compared to him. You walk past them all the way to the back of the living room where you disappear behind a white door. After a couple minutes, you reemerge from the kitchen with a glass of water in one hand and a bowl of steaming vegetable soup you made this morning. You slowly approach the couch watching him for any sign that you might cross a line. Instead of any aggression he takes a step back and allows you to go closer to the girl. You place the bowl and the glass on the coffee table and kneel next to the couch.

The girl opens her eyes and looks at you with distrust. Like father like daughter… you think to yourself. But you try to smile at her try to reassure her. ‘I brought you some soup, love’ you say in your most sincere and kind voice. ‘You must eat a little and then take some pills that will make you feel better’. You try to persuade her. She stares at you for a minute then at the man. They are suspicious of you and they have all the reason to be. You are a stranger to them as much as they are to you. Funny you are in the position to try and win their trust in your own home. You take the spoon you brought for her and dip it in the bowl. You take a spoonful and hover it close to your face blowing a little over it and then you swallow it. You can’t help the little moan of appreciation for your own cooking skills. ‘See? It’s good.’ You look at her with a small smile.

You don’t know where this came from; you blame it on the 6-foot-tall armored stranger whose stare drives daggers at the back of your head and your desire to keep your head on your shoulders and all your blood in your body. You don’t outright hate kids but you were never good around them. With a sigh, she sits upright and takes the spoon from you. She eats slowly. You keep watching her. She is a pretty kid. She has blue eyes and freckles on her small button nose. You wonder if she looks anything like the man behind you. She is pale and sweat collects on her little forehead most likely from her fever. She eats half of the soup you brought her and then turns her gaze towards the man. He hands her the two halves of the pills. She takes them in her small hand and grabs the glass. She hesitates. ‘It’s okay’ you reassure her and with a nod, she puts the half tablets on her tongue following up with large gulps from the glass. She scrunches her little nose in disgust at the chalky taste. ‘Atta girl’ you hear him utter from behind you. ‘Now lay down and rest.' he says to the girl in a stern yet gentle voice. He watches her nod and lie back on the couch her eyes half-lidded. He sighs, 'Good for now. ' he mutters under his breath. His eyes are fixed on her as he gestures to you. 'Come with me.' You rise from the floor and follow him outside the front door.

He leads you outside. When you cross the threshold, he takes a deep breath and a look of relief washes over his stern features. He gestures for you to sit on the front porch with him. 'We need to talk...' 'Yeah' you say crossing your arms defensively over your chest and standing as far away as the length of your porch allows. you take a moment to study him as he fixes you with a cold stare. You notice the many pockets on his vest and belt. A patch on his chest reads S.A.S. He's ex-military, you muse. His uniform makes much more sense now. But the mask still unnerves you.

He leans against one of the wooden porch support beams right hand hovering on the pistol holster. You think it's an act to intimidate you, to remind you that he is still armed and ready to strike you down in your own home.  You stare at him a little defiantly. You’ll be damned before you let this weirdo intimidate you on your turf. He studies you from head to boots and back up. You sigh and square your shoulders showing him you are not afraid of him. ‘I’ve been watching you.’ He tells you in a matter-of-fact tone. You try to suppress the surprise on your face. You look down at his boots avoiding his icy gaze.

He’s been stalking you, and the realization dawns on you. You didn’t even notice his presence around the house. Stupid, you think to yourself, I’m growing complacent. But not even Bellamy caught his smell and she usually barks when someone or something comes close to the house. But earlier at the lake, he took you both by surprise. He’s good at keeping his presence concealed, you have to give it to him. You nod to yourself in understanding. He probably knows the layout of your house by now, he knows you are alone, and he waited for you to be outside and ambush you. You start imagining all the horrible things he could have done to you. But no, he instead approached you, gun pointed at you, nevertheless, when he could have already killed you and taken over your house by now. You hum and make eye contact with him.

‘Why keep me alive then?’ you ask him without beating around the bush. You study his mannerisms trying to catch something, anything to prove you he’s human. But he’s as unreadable as a statue. His gaze remains fixed on you, unblinking and stoic. You feel him studying you, taking in every detail of your person. He seems intent on reading into your every move.

In an even tone, he answers, 'Because you’re not a threat.’ His response catches you off guard, ego a little bruised at that, but you can’t argue with his logic. If he wanted to, he could have killed you by now, that’s for sure. You remain silent for a moment, processing his response. ‘But that doesn’t mean I trust you.’ He adds kicking off the beam and taking a step closer to you. He looks down at you tilting his head a little like a bird of prey watching a mouse, waiting for it to give chase and make the hunt more fun. You don’t give in to the urge to run inside and hide in your bedroom. Instead, you take a step towards him and look up at him ‘Because you need me’ you speak quietly. You can imagine a raised brow under that mask. You smile in triumph; even though he acts tough he needs help and all the intimidating façade was in a desperate attempt to get it.

‘I get it’ you continue having him figured out. ‘Your kid is sick and out there dangers are lurking at every turn. You need a place to stay until she gets better.’ You finish voicing your theory on why he’s really here having this conversation with you. His eyes closed in defeat. Gotcha, you smile even more widely at your deduction. ‘You can stay, you say as you turn and walk down the three steps of your porch heading towards the gate. ‘On one condition, you add stopping in your track. You turn fully towards him and he watches you curiously as if you’d have any power to demand him anything. ‘No harm comes to me or my dog’ you say remembering his earlier threats of him offing you both. ‘Do we have a deal?’ it’s not unreasonable, though it irks you that you have to bargain for your safety with a stranger. ‘Deal.’ He says in his usual gruff voice nodding to you in sign of respect for your demand.

‘Good’ you say as you stalk off towards where Bellamy lays muzzled and tied like a prisoner of war. You free her and she jumps at you happy to be in your proximity. She must have been worried sick here all alone. Poor thing. You then go to the gate and slide the too-large bolts meant to keep any unwanted guests outside. Or inside in your case. ‘And to think nothing interesting ever happens around her, right, Bell?’ your rhetorical question is met with a bark of agreement.

[violetmuses]

Versus - A. Aretas 🖤

Title: Versus - A. Aretas 🖤

Fandom: “Bad Boys” Film Universe

Character: Armando Aretas

Pairing: Armando Aretas + Female Reader

Main Storyline: When “La Bruja,” Isabel Aretas, wreaks havoc to escape prison, one ghost changes everything.

Tag List: @nelo0wesker @yassbishimvintage @nobodygetsza @peaxhygirl @superstar-t20 @adoresmiles @klssngss @deja-r @hyper-trash-panda @amethyst-loves-bucky 🏷

Part II ❤️‍🩹

=====

2020

While another graveyard shift loomed, one uniformed prison guard shouted to pace inmates who worked in the laundry room of this complex.

“¡Aretas, seguir trabajando!” The prison guard slammed her palm against this metal organization table when Isabel Aretas had stood completely still.

Fed up, the uniformed guard pulled Isabel's shoulder to make eye contact, but didn't realize the upcoming horror.

With Isabel standing in full view, the guard noticed that Aretas found this bloodied wardrobe as darkened hair curled around her own face.

And for whatever reason, Aretas continues to whisper this terrifying chant.

Seconds before that guard would call out loud for help, Isabel Aretas reveals this large-scale weapon from behind and immediately stabs this poor woman, triggering chaos in all directions.

As security rushes to salvage destruction, you fire rapid gunshots and drop your presence from that ceiling, catching Aretas before she could escape.

“¡Todos muévanse ahora!” You shouted back in Spanish, hoping that everyone leaves the building to avoid more carnage. There's no other option.

While shocked victims dash out, you finally battle this haunting killer.

Weapons or even hand to hand combat scrambled back and forth.

In return, you both fight each other as exertion resounds through this dark space.

“¡¿Quién eres?!” Isabel struggled on the floor, still bloodied in that stolen uniform as you stood over her now weakened body.

“Your nightmare, bitch!” Two suppressed gunshots pull your last trigger and you stomp footsteps away, taking down The Witch herself.

_______

As emergency alarms wail over and over again outside, you keep walking, yet this barrel of another firearm clicked right behind your head.

“You just killed my mother…” Slightly accented English rasped moments later.

“I know.” You say, noting your assignment while placed in Mexico.

“Remorseful?” Isabel's son Armando Aretas continued his questions.

“Absolutely not.” You defended this plan once more and even lifted your weapon to face Armando's standoff.

“You a cop?” Armando stepped closer, but you stood tall regardless.

“Miami PD, Armando.” You lower the weapon and reveal this badge. “I knew about your mother's escape all along. Leave me alone, or I will turn you in right now.”

At that moment, Armando walked away, vanishing as this man lurked between uphill smoke and fire.

[magicamicitia]

Volume One, Chapter 3

“I know what I have to do.”

The Labyrinth seemed to have extended itself throughout the entire maze, twisting its formerly logical and patterned architecture into an incomprehensible display of chaos. The six girls and Kyubey stuck together as they dived deeper into the madness surrounding them. A sudden noise from the bushes startled Twilight.

“Ah-!”

The others followed her gaze. Applejack reloaded her musket, ready to attack.

“Stay back, y’all. I got this.”

“No way!” Rainbow Dash quickly shoved the other girl aside, almost causing her to misfire. “You had the last one, this one’s all mine!”

“Rainbow, don’t you dare-!”

Before she could finish giving her words of advice, Rainbow Dash was already advancing towards the unknown creature. With a pirouette in the air and a landing kick, she tore down the leaves to find a small winged monster biting her leg, as if it had been waiting for her to attack.

“Ack! What the what? Get off me!” She violently shook it around, but the creature only tightened its grip.

Applejack regained her composure.

“Don’t move, I’ll handle it!”

“DON’T MOVE?! Easy for you to say! Do you want this thing to gobble me up?!” Rainbow whined as she kept stumbling around, fighting off the familiar.

“If you keep hoppin’ like that, I’ll end up shooting your leg off!”

“I didn’t ask for your help!”

Retaining balance for a split second, Rainbow Dash slit through the monster with her blade. It let out a tiny shriek as it dissolved onto the ground.

“There, see? Easy as pie!” She dusted off her hands in a confident manner, But Fluttershy couldn’t help but point out;

“Rainbow… the bite mark…”

“Huh?”

She looked down at her legs, but it was too late. Small vines had sprouted from the injury, lifting her upside down.

“Woah!”

“Rainbow!” Yelled Twilight.

“I’m fine, I’ll handle it!” She looked at the nervous newbie. “Go on without me!”

“Are you sure…?”

“Yeah!”

“I’ll stay here and help you…” Fluttershy offered. “It’s probably safer if I don’t go close to the witch anyway.”

Applejack nodded and turned to the rest of the group.

“Let’s get goin’!”

The remaining four girls wandered deeper into the Labyrinth, Kyubey strutting close after them. The presence of magic became stronger and stronger…

A loud cackle echoed through the surroundings.

“The witch!” shouted Rarity.

“It knows we’re here!” Kyubey warned.

Descending from the skies, a snake-like monster plunged directly towards them.

“Look out!”

Applejack shot the witch’s head, diverging it’s route and causing it to crash. The monster groaned horrifically as it tried to get back up.

“Oh no, you don’t!”

With the snap of a finger, Rarity chained the monster down with silk threads.

“Pinkie!”

“You got it!” She giggled, raising her weapon towards the witch.

“It’s… PARTY TIME!”

A loud cannon shot followed by a loud explosion fired onto the head of the monster. But when the smoke cleared…

“That thing…” Rarity murmured.

Twilight readjusted her glasses to make sure she wasn’t seeing things.

“It’s still… alive?”

Almost as if it were mocking them, the witch let out an even louder laughter, and proceeded to dive towards the girls.

“Stay back!”

Twilight brought out her shield, and with her magic, summoned a barrier to block the enemy’s path. Moving too fast to stop now, it crashed like a bird against a glass window, disorientedly shaking on the ground.

At that moment, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy walked in.

“Are you guys okaaay?!” shouted the magical girl.

Her voice brought the witch back to its senses, and as it laid eyes on easy human prey, the creature advanced towards the poor girl, trapping her with its tail before she could react.

“Aaaahhh!!!!” she wailed.

“Fluttershy!”

The witch shook her around with a mocking chortle. Rainbow Dash, furious, leaped into the air.

“Give me back my friend!”

She slashed the witch’s tail, causing Fluttershy to fall. Rainbow quickly caught her and safely landed back on ground. The witch, however, howled in pain, now directing its attention to the offender. Once again, Applejack threw it off it’s balance with a gunshot to the head.

“That thing’s skull’s as tough as a darn boulder! We oughta get it from somewhere else!”

“Maybe you’re just not very good at aiming!” Rainbow Dash shouted as she ran back and forth dodging the witch’s attacks.

“What’d you say?!” She shot again as if trying to prove a point.

“Stop it, you two.” Rarity intervened. “Can’t you see you’re falling under its influence? Keep it together!”

As each one of them launched attacks from their side of the battlefield, Fluttershy desperately attempted to crawl away from the fight, sobbing.

“Fluttershy! Are you okay?” Kyubey ran to her aid.

“Please… Make it stop… I’m so… scared…”

“It’s no use.” The small fairy shook its head. “With the way they are now, these five can never hope to defeat Unausgeglichenheit.”

“Unaus… What?”

“The witch of Discord thrives on the disharmony of others. If they keep fighting each other, they’ll just die. You’d better leave if you don’t want to end up like that too.”

“What? No! I can’t just let them die!” She quickly sat up. “Kyubey… How do I help them?”

The Incubator stared deeply into her eyes.

“If you’re ready… I know there’s something you truly wish for, isn’t there? You haven’t had the courage to say it yet, but deep within your heart… You know what you have to do.”

A cold drop of sweat slid down her cheek.

Fluttershy remembered all of those days when Rianbow Dash angrily came to her about another fight with Applejack. All the conflicts she had to fix for her. All the arguments, all the yelling… It made her friend miserable, and it made her miserable. She always wanted to help, but never knew how.

But now, not only could she relieve that pain, but she could also save her best friend’s life.

As a child, Rainbow Dash was the one who stood up and saved her.

Now, it was her turn.

The spark of determination ignited within her very soul.

“Kyubey… I wish… I wish my friends would stop fighting all the time.”

In the battlefield, Unausgeglichenheit spun and dived in for another attack. The magical girls were already exhausted, having used up a considerable amount of their power. Twilight struggled to lift her shield again, but a flying spark emerged within the darkness and knocked the witch back against a wall, wailing in agony.

The girls looked for the source of their saving grace, and were shocked to lay eyes on none other than…

“Fluttershy!” They all exclaimed.

But Fluttershy wasn’t looking at them. Her eyes dead set on the witch, who, despite struggling, picked herself up again.

She moved her sights to Rainbow Dash.

“Rainbow! Please, stop being so stubborn! I know you want to prove yourself, but this a deadly battle, not a sports competition! Please, let us protect you!”

A pink thread appeared connecting their hearts.

“And, Applejack… You don’t have to fight for all of us! We’re your friends, you can rely on us as much as we can rely on you!”

Another thread sprung to life.

“Twilight,” This time, she reached out her hand. “I know you’re scared. Believe me, I am too. But when you have friends fighting by your side, I promise you’ll feel invincible!”

Fluttershy’s words consumed her entire body. As she took her hand, Twilight felt like they were one. Her other hand was grabbed by Rarity, and Pinkie joined in on the other side.

All together, the six magical girls united to deal a final blow.

Fluttershy held onto Twilight’s hand, as the two of them floated forward. With a magical synergy flowing through them, they knew exactly what they had to do.

“Connect!”

Their intertwined hands shaped a fusion of their weapons - A giant slingshot. The remaining girls channeled their own magic to help them increase their power.

“March Equinox!” The two of them said in sync, as if an instinct long dormant had finally awoken inside them.

A beam of light traveled directly towards the witch, who shrieked and crawled desperately, but to no avail.

In a blinding ignition, the witch eroded into nothingness. The labyrinth around them began to crumble, and soon, nothing was left but a small, black egg.

A magical girl’s most prized possession.

A Grief Seed.