#oops there was another ask like this that i forgot to throw in

[antlered-prince]

what’s the weather like in the Courts? Specifically the summer court for potential faesona lore reasons >:]

Fae realm weather varies just as much as the human realm weather! The only difference is that the Winter Court leans towards colder variations and the Summer Court leans towards warmer.

Of course, you still can't get a sunny day in the Winter Court or a cool night in the Summer Court. But you can get really clear night skies full of auroras and warm thunderstorms in each respectively.

[riri0000i]

Choso had always been the easy target. Since kindergarten. He was mentally weak, anti-social, and never responded to any provocation. Girls called him creepy, a freak, while boys raised their hands at him as a "joke". He spent mornings at school trying to not be noticed by people like you, without any success, of course. He had no one to hang out with and the only thing he did outside school was taking care of his siblings and pulling all-nighters in front of the computer, talking to the only people who could understand his loneliness.

A real loser.

" Oops, my bad Choso!" You chimed with a fake guilty face. Your friends were all laughing, some even taking pictures with their smartphones. Choso didn't move an inch from his chair, letting you pour the probably expired milk carton on his head.

" Hey! Don't frame me with this creep too." You said, noticing that a friend of yours was also taking pictures of you.

" It's not like the teacher cares anyway. " She responded. She was right: teachers gained nothing from defending students like Choso. Your school was one of those elite schools, mainly attended by people like you: rich and mean, with disgusting pastimes like making other people's lives miserable. And then there were those like Choso, who had earned the scholarship by studying.

" I know, but today I forgot to put my lashes on." Your answer made your friends laugh again and you joined them. Before class began you looked at Choso, drenched in milk. You met his tired eyes, as soon as he noticed your gaze he looked down. His weakness pissed you off.

“ Pathetic dog.”

౨ৎ⋆˚｡⋆

The chemistry professor was explaining biomolecules, there were maybe five students who were actually listening to him. You were not one of them: you were scrolling on your phone and the few times you looked up you watched how your friends sitting next to Choso tormented him, by kicking at his chair or throwing pieces of paper at him. Nothing new.

" For this topic I would like you to work in pairs by doing a project. I will select the pairs based on your grades." The teacher said before clearing his throat for the umpteenth time.

Shit, this is the worst.

You had seen the scoreboard from the last chemistry test and you were last while Choso... He was first, just like in any other subject. The teacher began to list the pairs and, as you predicted, you ended up with that loser. When Choso heard your name he felt his stomach turn in anxiety, he feared you more than anyone else. To him you were simply cruel. There was no sign, however slight, of kindness in your soul. To make it worse was your pretty face which, at first glance, was impossible to associate with your awful personality. Choso would be lying if he said he didn't find you attractive. Maybe you were the most beautiful girl he had ever laid eyes on.

" Turn in the project by next week." The teacher concluded before the bell rang.

" Can't believe that you have to do this with that creep!" Your friend laughed.

After a sigh: " Fuck it, I hate that teacher. Bet he did it on purpose." You said with a pissed tone. You noticed that Choso was watching you. You got up from your chair with another annoyed sigh and positioned yourself in front of his desk: hands on your hips and a fake smile on your lips, the usual one you used to make before saying a cruel comment.

" I don't want to be seen hanging around with you, much less in my house." You spat.

Choso replied in his insecure, shaky voice: " We can do it at my house... I warn you I have brothers so—

" Okay. See you later."

౨ৎ⋆˚｡⋆

Number not Saved : 602. Apartment building X. Near Y station.

You : I'm taking the train rn.

Choso was nervous. It was his first time having a girl at home. Fortunately his brothers were staying late at school that day. He quickly took a shower, getting rid of the smell of milk that earned him several stares by strangers. Being the loser he was, he asked for advice on Reddit to avoid being overly weird.

Knock Knock.

Choso jumped at the knocks on the door, interrupting his reading “How to Look More Sociable in 3 Steps”. You arrived a little late, not expecting the train to take so long.

" Come in..." He said, opening the door for you. You didn’t even say hello, you just sighed, as if you were forced to do the hardest work job on earth. As you looked around (It was the first time you had seen such a small apartment) Choso couldn’t look away from your body. You were so cute in that little outfit. It was the first time he had seen you without your uniform outside school. He would never admit it but Choso stalkled your instagram account several times (resulting in messy erections every time you posted bikini photos). The miniskirt you were wearing was surely going to distract him. He felt something twitching in his pants. Face instantly pink in embarrassment.

Oh. Oh no. No. God, no.

“ Are we doing this stupid project or what?” You asked, breaking the silence. Lucky him, he was wearing loose clothes. You didn’t notice anything.

“ Oh. Yeah… Follow me.” He responded quietly, his body tensing up. You noticed how Choso loses some of his loser appearance without the school uniform. He wore black sweatpants, a baggy sweater and his usual glasses. If he was one of your friends you might have complimented his look.

" Uhh.. You can sit on the bed… Or on the chair, you decide." He said in his usual passive tone. You huffed, sitting on his bed. It smelled like him. You were quite disappointed by the normality of his room (yes, you were expecting an otaku room: full of action figures, bodypillows and posters).

That miniskirt…I bet she did it on purpose. The sight of a pretty girl like you on his bed made Choso’s mouth go dry. He hated you but at the same time it was impossible to not admire your beauty.

" Hope you don't expect me to do anything about that project, do you, Choso?" You said with a smile on your lips. Obviously, Choso knew he would do most, if not all, of the work. He nodded, muttering something to himself. Before you could add any mean comment Choso sat down and started typing on his keyboard. Your initial idea was to find something weird, or childish, in his room and bully him but it was all so… Normal. With the excuse of going to the bathroom you explored the house.

Oh. One of his brothers is Itadori Yuuji? You looked at one of the photos hanging in the hallway. Although he didn't attend your school, Itadori Yuuji was quite popular. And he was popular for good reasons: athletic, generous and nice. You returned to Choso's room, who seemed focused on his work. You looked at him. It annoyed you to admit it but—he had a nice face. Cute, if you had to be honest. But he was unable to maintain a good self-image: he stuttered and couldn't keep eye contact, dark circles partly hidden by the nerdy glasses he wore, hair loose and messy and his posture screamed "I'm weak.”

Ugh. How can Choso be related to Itadori?

After a while: " I'm getting bored." You said as you approached Choso. His heart missed a beat, the last time you had said those words one of your friends put out a cigarette on Choso's palm just to entertain you.

" Uh, umm.. I doubt there's anything fun here..."

" Don't you have any games on your computer?" Choso was taken aback by your question.

" …Y-Yes?" He answered but Choso was sure you had other intentions, like finding another way to bully him. Standing up, you placed yourself beside him, leaning against his chair. Choso could smell a sugary scent from your clothes and hair, it was intoxicating. You watched how his long fingers trembled.

Oh, his hands are so big.

" Uh, uhmm y-you can sit here… I'll get another chair— Before Choso could add another word you sat on his lap. His body froze in surprise. Your ass on his crotch. You rested your back on his muscular chest, waiting for him to start playing. How was he supposed to respond to this?

" Oh, I like this game." You commented as if nothing was wrong.

“ R-Really..? I’ll p,play it then…”

He’s already hard.

To hold the controller Choso had to practically hug you. The way he would struggle to stay still and whisper an "I'm sorry" every time he accidentally touched you was so funny to you. But it was even more fun to rub your warm pussy against his erected sex, feeling his hot breath against the skin of your neck.

“ D-Don’t … P-Please, don’t move like that..” He nervously gulped. Because of that miniskirt Choso could sense the slightest movement you made against his body and thanks to that miniskirt you could feel how Choso's erection throbbed against your panties.

“ Like what?” You teased, shifting your weight again. Choso's body was trembling. You could feel his heartbeat racing. He was squeezing the controller to maintain his calm, feeling his inside burning at the softness of your body against his crotch. The miniskirt you were wearing was not helping at all, allowing Choso the sight of your lacy pink panties. It made his head dizzy and his erection harder, almost painful. How can a girl like you be so naughty?

" I.. S-Stop teasing me." He finally spoke up, trying to sound angry. His voice shaky and weak. You smiled and finally turned your body, now face-to-face with him. The movement resulted in another rubbing against his cock, now covered with a layer of sticky precum. Choso's face was red with embarrassment, his eyes glossy and he tried his best to hold back little moans by biting his lip. He was a mess.

" Choso~" Having you in front of him was wayy worse. You were so pretty and so close , your soft tits pressed against his sweaty chest. On your face that mischievous, almost cruel, smile. Your cheeks pink and your breath left shivers on his skin. His tip poked your wet cunt. You could feel he was big.

Maybe eight inches? It’s always the quiet ones.

" I, I can't take it anymore, p-please..." He whined like a little puppy. You gently moved a few strands of hair behind his ear and took off his glasses, throwing them on the floor. Shit, he was really handsome like that. You kissed him. Choso’s first kiss. Your lips soft and hot, leaving trails of a cherry gloss on his. He moaned inside your mouth, unable to follow your lewd rhythm. Your scent, your taste and your touch were making him obsessed, resulting in a messy and incoherent kiss.

Fuck, fuck, fuck, this is too much. He reached his limit. The same second you tried to reach the tip of his cock with your fingers he came, sobbing your name and leaving a cum stain on his pants.

“ I,I’m s—sorry…” His voice breathless, dick still twitching in pleasure. He continued to apologize with teary eyes, without knowing how erotic that scene was to you.

I want to fuck him.

[luxaofhesperides]

Surprise husbands + "How are you real?" ; requested by @vehan-tikkun-olam-and-stuff!

They may not have planned to get married, or even wanted it all too much at the beginning, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t going to treat each other right. It was rough going, with both of them coming out of relationships and having secret identities, but time had softened the hurt feelings and allowed them to actually get to know each other.

And Danny, Duke has discovered, is a really good husband. 

Neither of them ever saw themselves as married at 20, but sometimes life throws horrible curses at you and the embodiment of balance and life and death swoops in to save your life. Via marriage. 

His life is weird, okay? Duke has made his peace with it.

The thing is, if they had met naturally and started off as friends, Duke could see himself falling for Danny and asking him to marry him in a far off future. Instead, they’re doing everything backwards: married, then going on dates to know each other, and finally feeling close enough to be friends. 

It helps that Danny does his best to communicate and that helps Duke find the words he needs as well. 

He’s sweet, too, so kind and doting and affectionate. Like a really lovable cat, honestly. Duke’s never been cuddled so much in his life and he’s loving every minute of it. 

He… might be falling in love with his husband. What a revelation.

“Duke?” 

He blinks, looking up from his half-empty plate, pulled out of his thoughts suddenly. Tim and Dick stare at him, concerned, and he realizes he’s missed the entire conversation because he was so preoccupied thinking about Danny. In his defense, it was their one year anniversary the night before and Danny had kissed him for the first time after a date night spent playing video games and talking shit about their respective rogues. 

Tim snaps a finger in front of his face, and Duke startles. He got distracted by his Danny Thoughts again.

“Yeah, what’s up?”

“You okay? You’ve been out of it all day,” Dick says, clearly concerned.

“Oh, uh, yeah, it’s all good. Just… adjusting.”

“To what? Did something happen?”

Duke shrugs, scooping up another forkful of pasta to shove in his mouth. “Yeah, I… this is going to sound kind of stupid, but I think I’m in love with my husband.”

Tim, taking an ill-timed drink, chokes and spits out his Zesti. Dick springs back, trying to get out of the spray zone but doesn’t move far, shocked still by Duke’s words.

“Oh, yeah,” Duke realizes, “I didn’t tell you guys, did I?”

“You’re married?!” Tim shrieks as Dick clutches at his chest, eyes wide.

“You didn’t tell me?” Dick asks, offended.

“Seriously? That’s what you focus on?”

Duke smiles as they begin to bicker. They do it constantly, but this time it’s halfhearted, as if they’re just going through the motions of something familiar to distract themselves from the bomb he’s dropped on them.

In all fairness, Duke did forget that he didn’t tell them that he’s married to Danny. He’s also only mentioned Danny once or twice and heavily implied that Danny was just a classmate at GCU. And then forgot that he didn’t tell them, assuming that they’d figure it out eventually being Batman trained detectives, after all.

Well. 

Oops.

Clearly that is not the case. Duke hurries to finish his pasta before Tim and Dick finish their joint freak out and get their senses back together enough to interrogate him. He can’t escape it, but he refuses to have this discussion with an empty stomach. 

He just barely manages to scrape the last mouthful off the plate when his fork is being yanked out of his hands. Tim and Dick close in on him, standing to either side of him, trapping him in place, and look at him with knife-sharp smiles.

Here we go, Duke thinks tiredly, and resigns himself to clearing up this misunderstanding.

Somehow, he manages to explain the situation (I got cursed, he saved my life, we ended up married because magic is bullshit, he treats me so well) and Tim and Dick both agree to not hunt down Danny to show him the wrath of older brothers on one condition: Danny has to join them for a family dinner.

“Don’t worry, we’ll catch everyone up on your… situation,” Dick says, pulling on his jacket to head out. Tim is already on his phone, no doubt telling someone already. 

“Great,” Duke says, unenthused. “You’ll also be answering all the questions because I’m not in the mood. So if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to figure out a day that works for all of us, and then I’m going to kick my husband’s ass in Mario Cart.”

He walks out the door, grinning as he hears them scramble after him, then twists the ring on his finger (not a wedding ring, but a magic portal making gift) and steps into the portal. It closes quietly behind him, leaving him in Danny’s lair, a comfortable, spacious house with high ceilings and little bits of his personality scattered about. There are soft rugs with geometric patterns on them, star maps on the wall, stained glass windows that throw colors across the floor, and a giant couch and pillow pit in the living room.

Danny’s asleep in it, curled up and looking completely at peace. Duke toes off his shoes and carefully makes his way over, footsteps silent so he doesn’t wake him up, all plans of Mario Cart fading away instantly.

Danny doesn’t get much sleep, with the stress of school and an internship and ghost fights to worry about. It’s why his lair is so quiet and comfortable; it’s what he needs, and he doesn’t let anyone else in without invitation, rare as it is.

Duke is allowed to waltz right in thanks to the ring Danny gave him. It never stops making him feel overwhelmed by how much trust Danny puts in him to allow him unlimited access to what is his only true sanctuary, letting his lair be a place of safety and respite for Duke as well. 

He crawls into the pillow pit, There’s no way to do this without waking Danny up since he can’t fly, so he isn’t surprised to see Danny blink his eyes open, still looking soft and content. He smiles when he sees Duke, reaching a hand out to him that Duke gladly takes, bringing it up to his mouth to kiss his palm.

Sitting up, Danny tilts his head up in a silent request. Duke happily obliges, still reeling over the fact that he’s allowed to do this! He can kiss his husband whenever he wants! 

Yeah, he’s going to be riding that high for a while.

“Hey,” Danny murmurs, sleepy and quietly pleased to see him.

“Hi honey,” Duke returns fondly, “Have a nice nap?”

Danny nods, leaning into Duke and closing his eyes again. “Mhm. How long are you staying? I wanna cuddle.”

“I got nothing going on today. I’m all yours, baby.”

“C’mon,” Danny tries to tug him down. Duke goes slowly, covering Danny’s body with his own, but holds himself with one hand before he blankets his husband completely.

“Wait. There’s something we need to talk about.”

Immediately, the sleepy haze is fading from Danny’s eyes, leaving him alert. “What’s up? Is something wrong?”

“Not really? You know how we agreed to keep our marriage a secret until we weren’t in danger anymore and all those cultists and sorcerers were taken care of?”

“...Yes?”

“Well.” Duke sucks in a breath and offers a bashful smile. “Guess who forgot to tell people we were married after that whole mess was dealt with?”

The nervousness clears from Danny’s gaze as he stares up at Duke with incredulous amusement. “No. No way.”

“Yeah. Kinda dropped a bomb on them and they started freaking out over me being married. Anyways, they want you to come to dinner?”

“When?”

Duke leans back, sitting on his heels. “Let me check.” He pulls out his phone and sends a quick text to the group chat asking for a day they could have a family meal to meet his husband.

His phone is bombarded with texts and calls immediately until Barbara, bless her entire soul, forcibly mutes all of them and puts in a poll with a few dates, setting the poll to close in 24 hours.

“Okay, well, they’re deciding now, but probably soon.”

Danny nods. “Alright. I know these aren’t normal circumstances at all, but I’m so excited to meet the Bats.”

“You do not mean that after hearing all my stories about them.”

“No, I do!” Danny laughs, surging up to wrap his arms around Duke and pull him back down to lay among the giant pillows with him. “They sound nice!”

“The Bats sound nice?!” Duke repeats in horror. “Did you hit your head?”

“They do sound nice! You talk about them so fondly, and yeah they have problems and are dysfunctional, but they’re heroes. Of course they have problems. Even with all their baggage, they’re kind. And you clearly love them, so I do too.”

It’s hard to resist the urge to hug Danny tight enough to make him squeak while peppering his face with kisses, so Duke doesn’t. He just goes and does it, because he’s allowed to shower his husband (!) with affection (!!!) as much as he pleases.

“How are you real?” he says against the corner of Danny’s lips. “How are you so perfect! To me specifically! Honey, if we weren’t already married, I’d be going down on one knee right now.”

“I mean, you still can. We never got a proper wedding either. Think if we offer them a chance to help plan our wedding, they’ll forgive us for secretly being married for so long?”

“Oh, absolutely,” Duke says. He’s already giddy, just imagining what their wedding will look like, what song they’ll play for their first dance, where they’ll have the ceremony… He should create a Pinterest account to start putting ideas together. 

Later, though. He wants to woo Danny properly and take him on so many dates.

Dates which include dinner with the Waynes and Wayne-adjacents, apparently.

“You sure you’re okay with meeting them over dinner?” he asks, just to be sure. He knows how intense they can be, even when pretending to be normal civilians. It took him years to get used to them, himself, and he doesn’t want to push Danny into doing something he’s not ready to do.

Danny cups Duke’s face in his hands and gives him a quick, reassuring kiss. “I’m sure. If nothing else, it’ll be fun to see how long it takes for them to realize I’m not fully human.”

“I really am glad it’s you.”

“Yeah, me too. I’d choose you all over again if given the choice.”

“Took the words right out of my mouth,” Duke laughs, wrapping an arm around Danny’s waist.

“Can we nap now? Now that you’re here and holding me, it’s taking everything I’ve got to stay awake.”

“Yeah, we can nap now.” Duke settles into the pillows, Danny cradled in his arms and closes his eyes to bask in the quiet easiness of it all. 

He really couldn’t ask for a better husband, unexpected as he was. The others will see that too, once they meet him. It’s impossible to not love Danny once you meet him; Duke knows this all too well.

He loves his husband.

And his husband loves him back.

Duke is fully prepared to keep making that choice for the rest of his life.

[beomboomboom]

Recipe for disaster

genre: fluff, established relationship

pairing: Soonyoung x reader

summary: You should've known better than to leave Soonyoung alone in the kitchen to make some pancakes. After all, everyone knows that Soonyoung + kitchen makes a recipe for disaster

warnings: a little bit of a cooking fire

note: This fic has genuinely made me laugh so much, and I hope it'll make you laugh too. Enjoy reading <33

Soonyoung is good at many things, but cooking is definitely not on that list.

In fact, you've learned (the hard way) that if you leave him alone in a kitchen, there's a 50 percent chance something will end up on fire (most of the time it's food, but you swear one day it's going to be your house).

So, when you woke to the sound of clattering coming from the kitchen paired with the empty space next to you on the bed, it was easy to put two and two together.

Hurriedly shuffling out of bed, you make your way to the kitchen where you're met with the sight of a singing Soonyoung clad in your tiger-print apron that he gifted you for Christmas, as he gets out a big bowl from the cabinet.

"Love, what are you doing?" you ask with a tense smile, interrupting your boyfriends' cooking and singing session.

"I'm cooking breakfast for you! Pancakes!" Soonyoung exclaims with a smile. "Surprise!"

You feel your heart melt when you hear Soonyoung's loving intentions, but that fondness quickly turns into fear when you see him beginning to measure the ingredients.

Or to be honest, It shouldn't even count as measuring, it was more like eyeballing.

Eyeballing, but he wasn't really using his eyes.

You watch in horror as he attempts to pour a little bit of salt from the bag into the bowl, but ends up tilting the salt bag a bit too much, causing a huge amount of salt to end up being poured instead.

"Oops." Soonyoung says with a sheepish smile. "It's okay though, I'll just add more of the other ingredients so it'll cancel the salt out." Soonyoung says with a confident smile, assuring you everything is fine.

"You can just take out some of the salt-" you begin to suggest before becoming speechless at the sight of Soonyoung pouring half a bag of flour into the bowl, then squinting and pouring a bit more for good measure.

"Soonyoun-"

"Wait this breakfast needs to be a surprise," Soonyoung interrupts you at the realization as he starts to gently push you out of the kitchen.

"I think I could help you out a little-" you start to protest.

But your boyfriend quickly pushes you back into your room and assures you everything will be alright. "Rest a little more, I'll tell you when things are ready." He says while tucking you back into your bed. "And don't worry, I got this all under control. Nothing will go wrong."

It only took 15 minutes for things to go wrong.

"AHHHH—FIRE!!!"

You jolt up from the bed the second you hear Soonyoung's hysterical scream from the kitchen.

"THERES A FIRE! HOW DO YOU MAKE IT GO AWAY."

Quickly jumping to your feet, you hurriedly make your way to the kitchen. When you reach the kitchen you're met with the sight of a panicked Soonyoung as he frantically tries to fan out the smoke that's coming from the stovetop.

"I was going to the bathroom but then I forgot the stove was still on so I—AHH" Soonyoung begins to explain before yelping at the sight of another bright orange flame appearing.

"No, don't fan the flames you're making it worse," you say with a groan as you quickly run to the sink to wet a cloth and throw it over the flames.

As you and Soonyoung watch the flames slowly subside, you both let out a sigh of relief. Coughing because of all the smoke, you slowly stand up and begin to clean up the mess.

"I'm sorry. I was just trying to make you a nice breakfast and now it's all ruined—" Soonyoung says, the disappointment evident on his face.

"It's okay, you tried your best. Let me help you cook next time though," you say with a reassuring smile as you give Soonyoung a small pat on the shoulder. "How about we order some carry out for breakfast instead?"

"Okay! Let me get my phone," Soonyoung says with an excited smile as he gives you a small peck on your smoke-covered cheeks and runs to his room in search of his phone.

You let out a small laugh before shaking your head. Needless to say, you wouldn't be letting Soonyoung anywhere close to the kitchen anytime soon.

[milksnake-tea]

Dunno if you've ever answered an ask like this before, but do you mind telling us about your mutuals?

Rather, their writing styles and how they interact (No pressure if this sounds like I'm intruding on a boundary or something, I've noticed that you reblog a lot of works and I'm trying to find more fic writers from HSR and Genshin to support, but sometimes it feels a little scary 😅)

HELP NO IT'S OKAY !!! no fear in asking, we love people like you <333 these are mainly the mutuals that i've read fics from so that i can actually tell you how they write but still. THIS IS GOING TO BE A LONG ONE STRAP IN FOLKS. if i forgot ygs im sorry oops... also sorry for the tag COUGHS (esp to the ppl i keep tagging when i get asked abt my moots BYE kawa skip mhie naru ren im so sorry i love you i swear)

@generalsmemories

NARU !!! ONE OF MY FIRST EVER HSR MOOTS AND ONE OF THE WRITERS I LOOK UP TO THE MOST. her writing style is very scenic?? if i were to describe it, it's very dreamy and whimsical and it's like reading a fantasy book. very descriptive but not so descriptive that you're eating fancy words. she's jing yuan centric but occasionally writes for others such as dan heng and sunday! she's honestly very very silly when it comes to interaction, like in an older sister way <33 she talks like an aesthetic if that makes sense

@inarvii

skip has a very elegant feel to her writing like LORD. it's giving noble/fantasy thriller enemies to lovers but in a writing style i love her prose and how she really makes you feel the vibe of a scene. she's really kind and sweet, gives older sister vibes lowkey

@k9wa

kawa is like me but x497842389 cooler and with a lot better grasp on characters. you want proper characterization? you want big brain ideas? GO TO HIM. his writing feels theatric, like a movie or a play. it's so descriptive and he does an amazing job at describing action and characters and GRGRGRGR

@luvether

lord i dont know if its okay to tag you but uhm. hi waves hand 😭😭 honestly i haven't interacted w kou much but from what i can tell she's really nice!! BUT I HAVE READ HER WRITING. AND LAWRD. her writing feels like little snapshots of life, you feel like you're actually like. THERE. she always has the biggest brain of ideas i swear and i highly recommend her writing. mostly fluff with a touch of angst, one of my favorites fr !!

@emiken-070907

hi emi. bet you didn't expect to get tagged here huh. but you have one hsr fic and that's enough for me to slap you onto here and promo you (it's on ao3 and it's not an x reader, but it is a tragedy yanqing timeskip!!! i beta read for that btw flips hair (i still need to edit im so sorry emi please)). as for interaction, she is silly asf. TO ME PERSONALLY? shes like the ratty little sibling that you want to throw out the window but would also kill for. has great vibes over all, she's so sweet but sometimes shes a lil shit so. yeah. idk how she acts to followers but she is like that to ME. but she is full of whimsy and glee so there's that

@rainswept

edgar allan poe incarnate over here??? HELLO??? crow is. her writing is RAW. like okay this is going to get a bit gorey but they write like a freshly opened wound, it's vulnerable, it's poetic, it's pure imagery and i LOVE it. also another goofy moot. i think like just attracts like atp

@tragedy-of-commons

gwen is an absolute SWEETHEART. very silly. BUT THEY'RE SO SWEET. her writing is literally sunlight put into literary terms, if that makes sense. it's warm, comfy, and cozy (except when she kills you in the arms of your favorite character. which she has done) and i highly recommend her writing for a comfy read <3

@iceunhie

mhie is a HATER OF THE HIGHEST ORDER jk i love her she just bullies me GOODBYE 😭 mhie gives off older sister vibes, a lot of people (including me HELP) see her as intimidating but she's really sweet once you get to know her. or she calls you milk. who knows. ANYWAYS genuinely one of the people i look up to most, she always gives amazing feedback on writing and her own writing??? the prose??? she's a master at it. knows how to really elevate a piece and it's just really easy on the eyes. she's also a research writer, her jiaoqiu fic utilizes chinese proverbs and terminology and i think that's really neat <3

@st6rly

hi bottom beta. okay wait sorry you have a reputation i forgot ANYWAYS. SOL IS SUCH A SILLY GOOSE. i love him. BUT HE IS SO GOOFY AND I MEAN THAT IN A POSITIVE WAY. i haven't read that much about what sol writes unfortunately since i'm no longer interested in genshin that much 😭😭 but i've heard good things !! definitely someone you wanna check out if you like good vibes :D

@lowkeyren

ren my pookiebear my LORD !!! resident aquila favonia haver (she has like 21 as of right now) and she serves every time she writes. always gets slapped onto my rec list because she's one of the few writers that genuinely have me kicking and giggling 😭 really cute, really tension filled, one of my favorite authors :))

@scribs-dibs

SUNNIII true to his name his writing feels just so warm and light, like a slice of life anime. very relaxing reads, at least from what i've seen !! very warm, really really cute <33 like the main one that ive read from him is that alhaitham jealousy fic and??? the characterization was ON POINT. i loved it so much (the switch up made me laugh) as for personality. HES FUNNY. LIKE HES STRAIGHT UP HILARIOUS I LOVE HIM GO CHECK HIM OUT I SWEAR ITS WORTH IT

@akutasoda

q has a very pretty vibe if that makes sense, i haven't read much from them but i can definitely say that their writing style is beautiful, like a meadow full of flowers or a quiet stream. they've always been kind to me in that sort of older sibling way, and they're someone that i would trust as an emergency contact. lots of genshin and hsr from what i've seen on my dash, so definitely go check them out!

@aviiarie

avery's on the more reserved side, at least from my point of view, or maybe that's because when i first met them they had a ferminet pfp. they're pretty chill and casual, and can i just say? their writing is very easy to read, it has great flow and i can just lose myself in the fic. like i don't see the words i see what the words are saying, if that makes sense. avery also focuses on platonic writing, although they have been writing some romance with furina!! my personal favorite work of theirs was that fic of arlecchino comforting her crying child because it made me feel so much better about my life at 9 am when i just woke up.

@vynicity

FELICITYYYY she's a mutual in my heart even tho apparently tumblr thinks i dont follow her. but i do. ANYWAYS. another person that i consider on the more reserved side, but she's been fun whenever we talked. can i just say. SHE IS SO GOOD AT WRITING AVENTURINE. there's this one fic down the line about him being drunk??? i think??? and I ATE THAT UP because the tension and atmosphere that she managed to create. just magnificent. she has an aventurine series up right now iirc (i still need to read the new chapter im so sorry feli) and the prologue was. a roller coaster so definitely go check her out!

@vxnuslogy

vee is literally bursting with ideas and by god does she put them to use. i always see them brainrotting or thinking of new ideas or things to write, literally one of the most creative people ive met. can be a little silly, but still a sweetheart <33 her writing is more formal than what i'm used to i'll admit, but still a delight to read nevertheless <33 very descriptive is how i'd describe it, like it feels like she's looking at the scene as shes writing it

@ughscara

ayame is like. the sweetest person i have ever met. like ill be here being a little shit and she'll still be an absolute sweetheart I ALMOST FEEL BAD BECAUSE SHE HAS TO DEAL WITH MY ASS BYE 😭😭 i just recently reblogged one of her works and it straight up feels like it came out of a fairytale, it was so light and sweet <33

[dragonfirerogue-writes]

A/N: So, I was working on a story and then I couldn't edit it anymore... Probably cuz I took too long. Oops. Sorry @starry-fool

Sing With Me?

The Hat of Fate can burn.

Because of that accursed thing, you were now sitting in the living room of one Quinn Fabray. As the new kid in school, she scared the ever living shit out of you. While she wasn't quite the HBIC anymore, Quinn was still quite intimidating. What sucked further was that the two of you couldn't agree on ANYTHING.

"What about this one?"

"We've done that song already."

"This one?"

"No."

You had been at this for the past hour. Almost every suggestion you had was rejected one way or another. Quinn wasn't helping either. It was as if she wasn't even trying. It was frustrating.

"You suggest something then!" You groan, throwing your arms in the air. "Even if you don't care, it's still an assignment."

The blonde just rolls her eyes and levels you with a glare.

"Look. It doesn't matter anyway. Rachel and Finn are gonna sing, Mr. Schue will fawn over them and the rest of us are shoved into the sidelines. That's just how it is."

"That can change! There are so many great voices in the club. There's always a chance."

At that, Quinn slams her hand onto the table, startling you into silence.

"Things aren't going to change! Why bother trying!? If Mercedes and Santana can't, then we definitely have no shot. So just give up, dumbass!"

The other girl gets up and stomps away, leaving you stunned. You try not to cry. You were never great when someone yelled at you. Regardless, after a moment, you slowly gather your things and move to put your shoes on and leave. Why fight a losing battle?

-----+++++-----

Quinn felt horrible. After hearing the front door close, she knew she screwed up. She knew she forgot the main reason for the Glee Club's existence.

Acceptance. Love of singing. Love of each other.

She had to apologize, but you weren't making it easy. The next day at school, Quinn couldn't find you at all outside of class. It was clear you were avoiding her and it made her feel even worse.

By the time lunch came around, Quinn nearly gave up her search. It wasn't until she heard rhythmic tapping coming from an empty classroom. Peeking her head in, the blonde finds you sitting, headphones on while tapping a pencil onto the desk. She was about to get your attention, but then you started singing.

I could play any game with you

I could say what you want me to

I could lie, I could lie

She listens to your voice and suddenly realizes that your voices would mesh incredibly well together without her changing her natural tone too much. So she stands there, listening further while you continue to lose yourself into the song. The song was unfamiliar, but it was easy enough for her to pick up the chorus.

So she does and joins in the next time it comes around.

Even through your headphones, you hear Quinn's voice and it startles you.

"Quinn? What are you doing here?" You ask, standing up and pulling the headphones from your head.

"Looking for you," she replies with a smile. "I wanted to apologize for last night. Honestly, I shouldn't care about the drama and politicking. I've been in too much of it and I'm tired." She shakes her head. "Let's just have fun and sing, yeah? That's what we're in the club for, right?"

Her hand reaches out towards yours and waits. It was an offering. Of friendship? Of teamwork? All of the above? You weren't sure, but you were willing to find out. Your hand grasps hers and you look into those shining hazel eyes.

"Let's figure out what to sing then."

Quinn pulls you out of the classroom and you walk alongside her.

"Actually, I really liked the song you were singing. Teach me that one?"

Her hand never lets go of yours.

-----+++++-----

In the span of the week, you and Quinn work on your duet. Together, you figure out the lyrics and arrangement relatively quickly and dedicate the rest of your time to rehearsal. It doesn't take long for you to notice a shift in your relationship though.

You're sitting in Quinn's living room again. While you were opposite each other, you were still sitting close enough for your knees to touch. Quinn's voice blends with yours as you practice. But at a certain lyric, your eyes meet and there's a sudden tension in the room.

And if I go, will you love me

Will you love me when I come back

You were performing tomorrow. You were going to show the club that a performance doesn't need the best voices. You just needed to have fun. You and Quinn had worked hard to show this.

But this? This seemed like so much more.

The singing had ebbed as soon as you locked eyes. The air was so heavy, you could hardly breathe. It wasn't until Quinn's eyes flicked to your lips did you look away.

"Heh... I think we have that, what did Mr. Schue say? Vocal chemistry?" You say awkwardly. You could feel Quinn's eyes boring into you. "M-maybe we'll convince him to change things up, yeah?"

Suddenly, there was a hand on your cheek and you were staring into hazel eyes again.

"It doesn't matter if Mr. Schue changes things," Quinn says. Did she get even closer to you? She got even closer to you. You can feel her breath against your face. "But maybe we can still shake things up a little."

The smirk she pulls draws your attention to her lips and now you can't look away. You lean in and press your lips to hers. It starts out soft and tentative. You feel Quinn let out a soft sigh before pressing a little further into you. When you finally part, a small laugh escapes from you.

"Yeah, that'll shake things up."

Quinn just pulls you against her again.

"And as great as that is, I just want to 'sing' with you again."

Another kiss, plus many more, follow. You don't end up rehearsing anymore. Things were more than perfect.

[thewulf]

Big Blue World || Joel Miller

Request: Can you do a Joel Miller x Franks Younger sister reader?? I haven't seen any fics with her. Maybe she's a bright ray of sunshine to Joel's grumpiness?... Read rest here

A/N: Wasn't planning on posting this first but inspiration struck and you've gotta take it! Hope you guys enjoy.

Pairing: Joel Miller x Y/N

Word Count: 9.4k+ (Another long one!)

TW: Talk of suicide, general TLOU warnings

One – Seven Years Post Outbreak: The Dinner

The first time you laid eyes on him was only a few years after you and Frank moved in with Bill. It was simple really. Both you and Frank fell into Bill’s trap ditch. You managed to break your ankle on the fall down. Panicked and sure death was in your immanent future you burst out into tears. You weren’t made for this kind of life. This impossibly hard life. You, Frank, and a group of nine others were venturing to the Boston QZ after your home was demolished. You’d been walking for what felt like months, you could really never be too sure.

It didn’t make sense how you of all people were one of the last surviving in the group. Often getting by with just the skin of your teeth your only saving grace being that you were quick. You could run for your life. That, and you had Frank. He was eight years older and the best big brother you could have ever dreamed of. Even pre-outbreak the two of you were thick as thieves plotting to take over the world. He saved your life more times than you could count. You hated it. Being weak and shit. You wanted to be better for Frank. You had to survive with him. He couldn’t do it alone either.

So, when you fell into Bill’s hole and screeched you were just thankful whatever it was would take you both out. Neither having to live in this sick world alone. To your pleasant surprise Bill not only let you stay but he knew how to fix your ankle properly, without having pain in the future. You were sure Bill and Frank fell in love that first night. You didn’t know how that all that worked but you were so happy that your brother found his happiness, his purpose.

Life slowly turned back to a weird fucked up new normal for the three of you. Bill and Frank fell madly in love with each other within a few months. They never excluded you though, making you feel as though you were meant to be here with them. You found it easy to pretend you were back in life pre-outbreak. Finding hobbies around town you got really into knitting and gardening. You just wanted to be seen as useful to Bill. He was kind enough to let you stay so you wanted, needed, to bring something to the table.

You were interrupted from your solace hearing the men arguing at the front of the house. So much for weeding. Being far too curious for your own good you listened in on the two of them as they bickered.

“Oh, fuck you!” Frank yelled rather dramatically.

“Hey! Would you stop?” You knew Bill was rolling his eyes at your brother’s antics. Whatever the hell he could be up to now.

“Do I ask for things ever? Why am I even saying that? This is for me. This is for the three of us!” Your brother yelled. You inched closer dying to know what this blow out was about. The two men could be so damn dramatic when they wanted to be.

“Who cares what they look like?” Bill continued. What the fuck were they on about? You could only wonder as you sat behind the tree near the front listening in.

“I do! Our home isn’t just our house. It’s everything around us!” Frank yelled again throwing his arms up in the air. Oh, he was on the beautification subject again. Frank wanted everything pretty, but Bill never let him. Resource management was key.

“Give me a fuckin’ break.” Bill returned your over dramatic brothers cries. Oops. You knew that was a mistake. Bill always tried to argue but Frank always won.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot. I live in this world. You live in a psycho bunker where 9/11 was an inside job, and the government are all Nazi’s.” Your older brother seemed to calm down even though you knew he was downright mocking Bill.

“The government are all Nazi’s!” He boomed. You couldn’t help but to let out a silent laugh. You agreed with him of course. Frank just knew how to push his buttons.

“Well, yeah, now! But not then!” Frank defended, “I am asking for some paint and some gasoline for the lawn mower. That’s all. I’ll do everything else myself.”

“It is not man-“

Frank interrupted him clearly agitated. You were getting a full-on show now. You hated to admit it, but you loved when they had blow outs. It was your entertainment for the day, “If you say resource management so help me, I will run through one of your trip wires.”

“Okay, okay. Just tell me why.” Bill seemed to reason. Boo. You knew as soon as it calmed down the show was over. It was fun while it lasted. Standing slowly you were going to make your way back to the garden only to hear Frank continue.

“Paying attention to things. It’s how we show love.” You listened in again. What the hell was he talking about now? It sounded like bullshit, “This is my street too. Just let me love it the way I want to. And I’m fixing up some of the shops.”

Ohh, it just got juicy again.

“Woah, woah, woah.”

Frank rolled his eyes, “Not the stupid ones. Just the wine shop, and the furniture store. And the clothing boutique.”

“The boutique? Are we hosting formal garden patties now?”

“No!” Frank couldn’t help but to roll his eyes at the man. That was so like him, “But we are going to have friends.”

“Excuse me.”

“We’re going to make friends and we will invite them to visit.” Oh, hell yeah, this was getting good now. You could use some friends anyway. You prayed Frank won this battle with Bill.

“We don’t have friends Frank. We will never have friends. Because there are no friends to be had. Other than Y/N.” You grinned hearing that last bit thrown in. You loved that he always made sure to include you. You grew on him that’s for sure.

“Well, I’ve actually been talking to a nice woman on the radio.”

“You what?!” He screamed. Oh hell, Frank was in trouble now and he knew it. You watched as he darted to the front door ignoring Bill.

Bill turned right to you shaking his head. Busted, “I know you heard that whole thing. You’re not sneaky.”

You shrugged, “Who said I was trying to be?”

“You and your brother are going to fucking kill me.” He groaned making his way in to talk to Frank.

You only smiled as he departed. Bill had also grown on you.

Next thing you knew you were meeting the nice woman named Tess and her friend Joel. You couldn’t but to take your eyes off the man. He wasn’t like anything you’ve come across in Baltimore and now here. He was so freaking handsome. You hadn’t a clue how to handle it. It’d been years since you talked to another human let alone a beautiful man.

At dinner you made sure to look at anything but him, keeping your eyes locked on either Tess or Frank. Luckily Bill was his usual grumpy self after losing to Frank and kept his gun out and trained on the two strangers. You were so thankful he kept their attention instead of you.

“Can you not, please?” Frank sighed looking over to his boyfriend. You bit you lip trying to stifle the smile that threatening to spill over. They were always bickering. Like an old married couple. They couldn’t even hold it together in front of the guests.

“I’m the same way.” You heard Joel speak for the first time. He seemed to let Tess take the lead most of the time. Thankful you weren’t standing. You were sure your knees would be wobbly. He had that smooth southern drawl with a thick husky bite that’d draw just about anybody in. Fuck. You couldn’t have possibly been this horny to be thinking such things of a literal stranger. You had to reign yourself in quick.

“Oh, you’re a paranoid schizophrenic too?” Frank quickly chided in. You only leaned back rolling your eyes earning a quick glance from the handsome stranger.

“I’m not schizophrenic.” Bill sat there looking between everyone. That killed the whole mood. Great, just wonderful. The first real people you meet, and you’ve all ruined the chances of them coming back already.

Tess cleared her throat interrupting the silence, “Well, can I just say, gun aside, which I get,” She laughed but continued, “how nice this is to have a civilized meal in such a beautiful place? It’s been so long. I mean, I just, uh, I wanna thank you. Even if we don’t end up working together. I really needed this.”

“We are working together.” Frank cheers confidently. You only leaned forward smiling, “We are.” He looked at Bill who only looked horrifically apprehensive about this whole situation. Frank was pushing him beyond his limits.

Before you knew it Frank and Tess were walking inside giddily talking about something they chatted about on the radio. Leaving only you, Bill, and Joel alone. Great, the three mutes. You leaned back waiting. It wasn’t your place. This was for the big dogs, and you certainly weren’t one of them.

“If my uh, if mine brought strangers into our situation I wouldn’t be too happy either. But of all the people you could’ve found on the radio we’re actually decent people.” You leaned back further letting your mind wander as the two of them talked. You only prayed Bill wouldn’t drive him away completely.

You sighed as they left. Bill drove them out. You stayed a couple of feet behind and watched the two conversations unfold. You gave Tess a wave and smile before she was out. Joel didn’t bother turning around as he waved the group off. Leaving you with only a small frown. They’d be back soon enough. You were sure of it.

Two – Eleven Years Post Outbreak: The Supply Run

That familiar voice that you hadn’t heard in so long came from downstairs. Quickly, you ran down the steps to greet the now acquaintance that you wished would show up more often than he did.

“Joel! Tess!” You jumped down the last step only to be greeted with Joel and Bill, “Wait where’s Tess?” Fear ran through you. Did she get infected? Was she gone already? She was Frank’s only friend outside of here.

“Frank just took her to the boutique.” Bill grumbled sitting down in the chair at the dining table.

You let out the breath you were holding, “Good!” You clapped thankful that the worst hadn’t come over your somewhat friend. If you could use that word, “Maybe she’ll pick out some of the clothes I made.” You grinned knowing you just stocked the store up with your latest sweaters and hats. What else were you supposed to do with your time other than make way too much clothing that the three of you would never go through?

“You make clothes?” Joel asked seemingly interested in the conversation.

You beamed just happy he noticed you. He hardly noticed you before, only briefly talking to you each time they had come back. It seemed they stopped about once a year. Tess always giving Frank a heads up on the radio before the made the trek up north.

You wished you could get Joel to see you. But you were just Frank’s little naïve sister. That’s all you ever seemed to be. Not that you blamed him, he was right after all. You really were just Frank’s naïve little sister having way too much optimism for this cold world.

 You craved any attention Joel gave you. From the second you laid eyes onto him four years prior and every brief interaction each year since you were entranced by him. He was so strong and composed. Something so opposite of you. Someone so sure of himself every time he came around. And Jesus, look at the man. He was so damn attractive it nearly drove you mad. He only seemed to get more handsome each time he and Tess walked through those gates. You thought about him far too often. Far too often for somebody who saw you as Franks little sister.

“I did and do! There should be some that fit you if you want some yourself?” You gave him a hopeful smile. Maybe he’d accept?

Joel looked somewhat impressed? You couldn’t tell. It wasn’t a look you’ve seen from him before, “Yeah?”

“Mhmm.” You grinned, daring to take a step closer, “Bill’s even modeling my latest collection. Classic springtime.” You waited patiently for him to decide. You weren’t sure how to handle yourself if he decided to come with you. You’d literally dreamed of alone time with Joel and here was a chance at it… you didn’t think you were ready.

Bill huffed turning away. Because of course he did. Earning a brilliant scowl from you. Truth be told he held a lot of love for you in his heart too. Your constant reassurance and optimism grew on him over time, not that he’d ever dream of telling you. He wasn’t mushy. He could hardly handle you in your sober state. In your emotional one? He’d for sure go mad.

As if by a miracle Frank and Tess came barging in giggling about who knows what. Saving you from a too awkward encounter with both grumpy men. You couldn’t help but to smile at the Tess and Frank. They would have been friends’ pre-outbreak too. You could just tell. Two souls that connected so effortlessly.

 Joel noticed you watching them. He always noticed. He was always watching you when you weren’t watching him. He couldn’t help it. He was drawn to you, and he was really God damn tired of fighting it. Every time he came, he hoped he wouldn’t run into you. He wanted to but for his sanity’s sake he couldn’t run into you. But you always showed up. With that damn brilliant smile and cheerful greetings. Making him feel way too special. He craved it. He loved it.

“Y/N!” Tess came rushing over to you placing both hands on either of your shoulders, “You made these? These are actually good. They have designs in them and shit. I didn’t really believe Frank when he said you were good at it, but he was right. I’m impressed.”

You shrugged, “Well, when you have all the time in the world.”

That earned a chuckle out of the woman. She seemed so happy and relaxed here. A side Joel rarely saw. A side that was seemingly reserved for you and Frank. It made sense though, both of you were infectious. Both Joel and Tess let their usual stoic guard down around you both.

“Joel. Go now. Y/N will show you.” She ordered. So sure of herself. Something you so deeply admired about the slightly older woman. She lived that life. The rugged one. Yours was so damn peaceful compared to hers. A country club compared to the life she lived.

You nodded towards the door, “Come on, I’ll show you.” Not daring to betray Tess’s orders you nodded for him to hurry up.

He nodded. His mind was made up for him by Tess, “Alright. Lead the way.” He tried to look grumpy. He didn’t know how it was actually paying off though. Because he was way too damn excited to finally be alone with you.

You held the door open waiting for him to join you outside. You led the way a couple of steps in front of him. Tired of the silent walk you had to say something, “How’ve you been holding up Joel?”

He sped up a couple of steps taking that as an invitation to walk beside you. He had no God damn idea of how to act around you. He had a stupid big fat crush on you that Tess, and now Frank, knew about. He was sure that’s why she sent the two of you alone.

It happened slowly for Joel. Initially, he really only did see you as Frank’s little sister. You didn’t do much for him. But over time, over the shortest of visits he slowly started to look forward to seeing you bright shining face. You always greeted him with the happiest of smiles. Like it was the pre-outbreak world, like nothing was wrong. Tess picked up on it over time when he bugged her to visit with supplies. Claiming he needed to see Bill but always brining you up somehow.

Joel knew it was dangerous. Falling for someone in a world like this. Someone like you. You were just too pure for this world. He couldn’t see you outside of these chain link fences. He didn’t want to imagine you trying to survive out there. You didn’t deserve it. You deserved so much more.

“I’m okay. We’re okay. Getting by just fine. Couple supply runs here and there.” His accent came out strong the longer he was away from the QZ. The longer he was able to relax the thicker it came out.

“Good.” You nodded. You too had no idea how to talk to him. Coming from such separate worlds it was like your brain couldn’t fetch the words to converse with him. Which was really bad for you.

“And you?” He offered. He was trying. Something you hadn’t seen from the gruff man. You turned looking at his face as the setting sun seemed to hit all his angles just right. Eyes tracing every feature you soaked everything about him in.

“I’m decent.” You sighed knowing that was a terrible answer. So, you did what you did best and just started talking, “Been busy knitting a store up. Trying some new techniques in the garden I read from a 2001 Farmers Almanac. I think it’s working too. I’ve got a ton of cucumbers. I’ve gotta pickle them or they’ll go bad. Unless you guys want some?” You offered knowing you needed to stop before you babbled far too much. It was either way too much talking or stone-cold silence when it came with you and awkward conversations. And this was incredibly awkward.

He was giving you a different look. A much softer one. One that’s as if he’s seen you for the first time, “We’ll take some. But you’ve gotta pickle the rest. We’ll be back and then I’ll take some pickles. Deal?”

You giggled feeling your cheeks heat up as he kept his eyes locked with yours. You watched as you saw his eyes turn up slightly as small smile formed on his face. You had a feeling this was a very rare occurrence for Joel. Not often finding that smile. And you were right. It was terribly foreign to Joel, but you brought it out. Somehow, some way he felt a little lighter when you were there.

“Deal! We’ll have way too much for us anyway. The garden is getting a bit out of hand, but it keeps me busy.” You stopped pointing towards the building, “Here we are.”

He held his hand out, “Ladies first.”

“Course.” You smiled leading him in, “There should be some stuff over there that you might like. I’ve got some extra stuff in the back if you don’t like any of it.”

He nodded letting himself go and search. You sat back on the countertop that used to contain the cash register.

“You really made these?” You heard him before you saw him.

“The ones without the tags yeah!” You brought your legs up and sat with them crossed beneath you. Simply waiting on him to grab whatever he needed.

Before you knew it, he walked up to you holding a few sweaters and shirts, “Is it alright if I take these?”

You nodded, “Sure. I’ve got plenty more. It only takes a few hours to make these now. I’m afraid I’m going to run out of yarn.”

“I can get you some.” He replied without a hesitation.

“Yeah?”

“Sure. Consider it a trade. Next time I see you I’ll have some. What colors you want?”

You smiled a bright smile to him. You’ve grown so fond over the four years you’ve known each other. But it felt like you’d suddenly broke through to him. Whatever it was you were so thankful. This was a Joel you didn’t know. A Joel you could surely get used to. Even if you only saw him every year or so.

“Pinks and purples. I ran out of those so quick. Didn’t know how much I liked them.”

He nodded, “Pink and purple yarn coming right up.”

“Thank you, Joel.”

He shrugged, “Consider it a trade.”

Three – Fifteen Years Post Outbreak: The Seed Trade

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Looking around to make sure Bill wasn’t going to pop up.

Frank shrugged, “He’s got so many fucking guns he won’t notice a measly 9mm missing.”

You sighed feeling that anxiety rising in your chest, “Fine. Who’s coming for this trade?”

“Joel.”

“Joel?” You sounded surprised. It had only been six months or so since you’d seen him last. Not that you were complaining in the slightest. You’d always welcome him back.

“And Tess.” He smirked, “But I just wanted to see your reaction.”

“Oh, fuck off.” You giggled knowing he was teasing about your crush on Joel.

“They say after six months of crushing on someone it’s love. It’s been what? Eight fucking years of the two of you flirting like mad when he comes around. I think it’s past love at this point.”

“What of it Frank? It’s not like he’s moving in here. It’s not like I’m moving to the Boston QZ.” Rolling your eyes, you leaned onto the chain link fence.

Franked rolled his eyes right back at you, “Why couldn’t he move here?”

“Uhm, because he has his own life with Tess?”

He shrugged, “You know people moved for far less in the pre-outbreak days.”

“Well, we aren’t living in those days, are we? We’re living in fucking reality Frank. He has a life. I have mine.”

“You haven’t even asked.”

“It’s not my place to.” You admitted. Sure, you’d thought of it, but it wasn’t your place to in the slightest. This was Bill’s place after all. The two of you so immersed in the debate back and forth neither of you heard the pair coming up on you both. It wasn’t even like they were being that silent.

“What were you guys talking about?” Tess asked popping out of thin air. Joel stood behind her smirking at the heated conversation between the two siblings. He and Tommy bearing a striking resemblance to the bickering siblings.

“Nothing!” You turned smiling at the pair you’ve grown to love over the years.

“Joel!” Frank said right after you. You turned towards your sibling eyeing him up and down. The nerve on him beyond you at this point. Frank was really just tired of waiting to see you two together. He knew there was nothing going on between Joel and Tess, like you were worried about, but he also knew Joel was apprehensive. As were you.

“And Tess!” You turned towards the two of them again, “Good to see you both so soon.” You smiled brightly towards Joel. Your best smile reserved for your favorite man. That certainly didn’t help your case with Frank though.

“I got you some more colors.” He handed you a duffel bag stuffed full, “Red, purple and blue this time.”

“You’re spoiling me, Joel Miller.” You cheered happily accepting the gift. Tess and Frank could only step back and watch the innocent interaction. For the life of her Tess couldn’t understand how soft Joel got with you. Only with you. Frank too marveled at your nerves with the man. Your usual confident self only seemed to waver in his presence.

“Or” You turned back towards him with wide eyes. Getting ready to tease him, “Is it because you know I’ll make you nice clothing?” You continued on, welcoming the harmless flirting that always seemed to arise between the two of you.

“You caught on quick.” He threw you a rare wink.

You giggled softly, acutely aware of the audience intently listening in behind you, “You’re lucky I adore you both. I’m more than happy. Any requests?” It really was your favorite. Gift giving was your love language to others. It just made you so warm and fuzzy inside to see everybody’s reactions to getting something they love.

Tess coughed, not caring that she was interrupting the moment. She needed some items and if you were offering, she would be taking. She missed the harsh glare from Frank though, “I really could use some new socks.”

You turned towards your friends, “You got it. Stick around long enough today and I go grab you a few pairs?”

She nodded her head quickly, “I honestly could really use them. You mind Joel?”

“As long as Bill doesn’t.”

Frank shook his head quickly, “Not at all! We’ll make sure to have dinner ready for everybody.”

“We wouldn’t want to impose…” Joel began before you bucked up the courage and interrupted him. You wanted him to stay.

“You wouldn’t be at all. Bill and Frank love cooking. Enjoy it.”

Joel nodded folding into your assurance quickly. That’s all he really needed to hear before he agreed to staying.

“Thank God.” Tess grumbled, “I could use some good food too. Joel, we gotta get out here more often.” Tess notes.

“I agree!” You nodded trying not to be too gleeful about the innocent proposition.

“Yes please.” Frank nods. He adores hosting and wants people to come around more often. Especially if those people include Joel. He so desperately wanted to see you happy with him. Even if it meant losing you to the Boston QZ. He knew you’d visit.

Joel let out a rare laugh seeing the group so happy. So fucking carefree. So, unlike the norm. God, he missed the old days. How simple that life really was, “I’m not stopping anyone.”

Tess smiled, “It’s settled then. We’re coming for you more often.”

Your face lit up at the confirmation, “Good. Well come on then.” You flashed your smile towards Joel, “You know where everything is, get comfy.” Beckoning them to come in with your hand you turned back towards Tess, “What color this time? I’ll even make you blue ones if you want!” Your cheeks began hurting from the grin that wouldn’t fall from your face. It warmed your heart that Joel always brought you more yarn, always. Even five years after that conversation with him, he never failed to bring you some.

She shook her head, “Just use some scrap yarn or something, nothing special.”

“You deserve to have a color you want Tess. Something that makes you happy. Plus you know I have a pair in every color ready to go.” Your eyes softened as you really looker her over now. The last five years not being kind on her, on anyone really. Her initial soft features began hardening over time. Wrinkles formed where her scowl always was. The world wasn’t kind to you. But the world was downright cruel to Tess and Joel.

“Anything is fine really…”

You stopped immediately not satisfied with her answer. Joel almost ran you over as he was paying attention too closely to the conversation and not what you were doing, “Well, what’s your favorite color?”

She laughed, “That’s something I haven’t thought of in a while.”

Giving her a sad look these conversations never failed to pull at your heartstrings. You all were unfortunately born into a world that would simply never exist anymore. A world that was thriving. A world that was so fucking foreign it hurt. You were almost jealous of the humans being born in the post-outbreak world. They would never know the luxury of living that old life. This was all they knew. This was their normal. This September will mark the fifteenth year that you were living this new normal. This insanely fucked up normal.

“Mine was pink. But it just doesn’t seem as happy anymore.” You admitted, “I think my new favorite is blue. Sky blue. That’s happiness to me.” You shot her a small smile.

“Why’s that?” She asked as the group started their short walk back to Bill’s house.

You shrugged hoping what you were admit didn’t make you look too soft, “When I get tired of gardening I like to lay down and just look up. Watch the clouds like I did when I was a little kid. Find figures in the clouds. The sky never changes. There’s just something so cathartic about it.”

You didn’t see it because he was walking behind you but a ghost of a smile crossed Joel’s lips. He couldn’t help it. He was so fucking drawn into everything about you. So gentle in a world that wanted to rip you apart at any moment. He, of course, made a note of it. He needed to find sky blue yarn. It wouldn’t be easy now. It started getting difficult to find untouched yarn in the QZ. It was even harder finding it outside. But it never bothered him. The smile alone on your face when he handed you a bag full of yarn was worth all the trouble to get it.

Tess nodded, “I think mines green. Grass green. Tree green.”

“And why’s that?” You asked her the same question, curious as to what she came up with.

“Green means the weather gets better. It just makes life easier.” She let out a small sigh of frustration. A growing frustration of trying to stay alive. It wears down on you far too quickly.

Again, another wave of sadness rushed through your heart. Why were you, of all people in the world, given the chance to live this somewhat normal life in the middle of nowhere? Why wasn’t Joel given the chance? Tess? The longer you lived here relatively unstressed the more guilty you felt through it all. Especially seeing just how much the real world had aged the pair.

“Then green it is. I have a really nice forest green pair I think you’ll like. Did the last pair fit okay?”

She nodded opting not to reply verbally feeling the emotions bubble up from deep within her. Emotions she buried so deep down she wasn’t sure if they’d ever come back up. But your gentleness with her, your determination to break down those walls she put up so high was beginning to crack the walls. How you could be so thoughtful was beyond her greatest comprehension. You had to be selfish in the world. You were the opposite.

“Okay!” You clapped at the group made it back to the house, “I’m going to run to the boutique to grab what I need. See you guys later.”

“Want some company?”

Your stupid heart sped right on up hearing that husky voice from behind you. Biting your cheek, you wanted to hide the smile that was forming automatically. God, you’d dreamed of moments like these. Moments where Joel sought you out instead of you seeking him out. Moments where you knew he liked you. Wanted to be around you.

“I’ll always take your company Joel.” Turning towards him you did not want to see Frank and Tess’s reaction. There was a 100% chance they’d run into the house giggling like little schoolgirls gossiping about the two of you. They turned into middle school girls the second any kind of drama could be sniffed in the air.

You could’ve sworn you saw the slightest hint of a blush dance across the apples of his cheeks.

Giving him a soft smile, you started walking to the boutique with Joel in tow.

“How are you doing Joel?” You asked hoping he’d give you the real answer not the bullshit fluffy stuff you were used to. You always asked him this same question each time he came.

“I’m… tired.” He admitted while running his hand through his grown-out hair.

Looking down to the ground you hid the frown as you kept pace with Joel now, “I can’t even imagine Joel. I’m so sorry... I”

He cut you off by placing a friendly hand on your shoulder. The contact immediately making you freeze up. It’d been too long since you’d been touched by anybody other than your brother or Bill. Your eyes clouded over with unshed tears as you tried to bite back the emotion that suddenly overcame you.

“You don’t need to apologize.” You continued to walk as you racked your brain for anything to say to him, but it seemed to have short circuited.

“I feel guilty.” Not having a clue why you were admitting it to him you blinked a few times hiding your emotions best as you could.

Joel didn’t understand why you would feel that way. He just gave you a curious look, waiting for you to continue. When you didn’t hear his reply you finally bucked up the courage to get another look back at him. His eyes urging for you to elaborate.

“Why me? Why did I get to live this life. This easy, simple life? How did I luck into it? I guess it doesn’t really matter. It’s all ending soon anyway.” You decided to drop the bomb on Joel. Finally feeling like you could tell somebody.

“Why do you say that?”

You sighed finally spitting out what’s been bothering you for the last few months, “I think Frank’s sick.”

“What kinda sick?”

“Not infected. I think it’s like pre-outbreak sick Joel.” You turned away wiping the stupid tears that slipped down your cheek. You were worried. So, fucking worried for your best friend.

Joel still looked confused, “Okay. Why do you think that?”

“He’s tired all the time. Complains to Bill about losing feeling in his hands and feet. He doesn’t remember things like he use to. I don’t know. Maybe I’m looking too much into it, but something just doesn’t feel right.”

Joel frowned trying to think of words to comfort you, but he came up terribly short. He didn’t do this. He couldn’t do this. The last time he had to was when Sarah was alive. An entire lifetime ago.

You continued knowing he hadn’t a clue what to say, “Bill won’t talk to me about it either. Says nothing’s wrong. I don’t know what to do Joel. They can’t just ignore it.

“Do you think there’s medicine? I can try and find something.”

You shook your head, “Don’t think so. Don’t think they had a cure back then. Sure as hell don’t have one now.”

“Well, you don’t know that Y/N.”

“It’s not cancer. It’s in his brain or something. That’s what the books are saying. I don’t know Joel. It just doesn’t feel right.”

He nodded, “Keep an eye on him.”

You stopped in once you reached the store. Quickly you ran in grabbing what you needed before meeting him back on the street to start your walk back to Bill’s house. Both of you walked back in silence, unsure of what to say.

“You shouldn’t feel guilty.” Joel broke the comfortable silence that consumed the walk home.

“Yeah.” You mumbled not really feeling like debating right now.

“Really. You and Frank were meant to find this place. You were meant to do everything here. You’ve been a constant in Tess’s life. My life, for the last eight years? God, how’s it been that long?” Joel smiled thinking back on his times with you,.

You smiled, “Don’t make me feel so old Joel.”

That drew a heavenly laugh out of your favorite guy. Something that came around so rarely that you cherished every second, “You’re still a kid.” Joel didn’t believe that. As cruel as this world was to everyone it still looked so beautiful on you. You hadn’t aged like everyone he knew. A woman who could pass in her twenties easily.

Scoffing you shook your head, “Hardly! I’m seasoned at life.”

“You sure are.” Joel nodded. He smiled as he studied you this time around. He wished and prayed he wouldn’t have fallen for you, but he couldn’t resist. Not with that smile. Not with your kindness. He wished this was easier. There was no easy way to go about it. That’s why neither of you cared to admit your feelings. What good would it really do but complicate things further?

You made it back to the house where you were ambushed by Frank who looked far too happy, “Y/N! They got us strawberry seeds! Your favorite, remember?”

Walking over to him you inspected the seeds. Looking up to Tess you smiled softly to her, “Thank you. I haven’t had a, uh, strawberry in what?” You looked to Frank brushing the tears away from your eyes, “Fifteen years now?”

He nodded with a big happy smile, “Yeah, fifteen years.”

You turned to Joel, “Thank you so much!”

“Sure, we would’ve brought them sooner if I would’ve known you liked them so much.” He admitted. He wasn’t sure how you did that to him. Got him admitting embarrassing things in front of everybody he knew.

“I guess I just forgot about them. Such a luxury I didn’t even think of. They were our mom’s favorite. She found a way to incorporate them in our food almost everyday.”

Frank wrapped you in a hug. He knew just how soft you were. How sad you got when you thought about mom or dad. They just disappeared right out of your life. Dad never made it back from work that day. Mom got infected the second day. Neither of you could kill her so you ran. Ran so far away until you landed in the Baltimore QZ. Until it then was demolished.

Giving him a squeeze to let him know you were alright you pulled yourself away from him, “Thank you both. Really. Now you’ll just have to come back in a few months when they’re grown. We can make some strawberry shortcake.” The gears started turning in your head. There were so many new recipes you guys could use with strawberries now on the menu.

Joel nodded. Tess agreed, “We already agreed to coming around more often anyway. Now it’s just an extra excuse.”

Frank pulled her to the living room to talk about who knows what.

“Alright, I’ve gotta get to work.” You held up the green yarn. Walking over to the chair in the window you got comfortable.

“Want some company?” Your favorite voice broke your concentration.

“You know my answer, Joel Miller.” With some newfound confidence you winked at him as you said so.

Four – Eighteen Years Post Outbreak: The Trip Back to Boston

“No. No, no, no, no, fuck no!” You punched the pillow sitting next to you with all your might. This couldn’t be fucking happening to you. They couldn’t be making you leave. Feeling your heart tip into two you let the tears fall freely. How could your brother do this to you? You knew his health was the reason, but you couldn’t fathom why he wouldn’t let you stay. You’ve been through this whole thing with him. It felt like he was just abandoning you.

“Y/N… you have to.” Frank’s sad face broke you. You didn’t care about his feelings anymore. You broke down completely now letting the loud sobs free.

“Please Frank, please don’t make me go.” Choking on your words you could hardly comprehend why he was saying this. Why he was making you go.

“You can’t be here any longer. You have to go.” He couldn’t look at you not with the look you had on your face.

“Just tell me why Frank! I can help. I can help you both. I’ll do more. If that’s what it is, you know I’ll do more Frank. Please don’t make me go. Please Frank.”

He shook his head letting his own fresh set of tears fall, “I’m dying Y/N. I’ve got a few months, maybe a year left. You can’t be here for that.”

“I’ll die out there.” You shook your head back and forth suddenly terrified of what traveling to Boston actually meant. The real world. The sick world. The world that wanted to kill you.

“Not with Joel. Not with Tess.”

A cry broke from your throat, “Just like that? After all this time? I can be there for you in the end. I can help Bill.”

“Bill’s going to have to move on to and I’m not sure if you fit into that plan.”

“Oh.” You continued to cry. Curling up within yourself you let yourself cry until you couldn’t anymore. Frank didn’t dare try and comfort you. He knew that wasn’t welcomed. So, he sat there. He wasn’t going to leave you. Not yet anyway.

After calming down you finally processed what the this all meant. It meant the end of the road for you and Frank. It meant starting over, completely. You knew it would end sooner or later but it still stung. It didn’t feel like enough time.

Standing suddenly, you caught Frank’s attention who was just sitting there with his head down, “I’m staying in the guest house.”

“Y/N…”

“Night.” You shut the door behind you, loudly.

It was still bright out when you laid down to go to sleep. Joel and Tess would be here in the morning to get you. To take you to your new home. Turning over in your bed you looked out the bedroom window studying your home once more. The flowers that bloomed out front reminded you of all the times you and Frank spent gardening. Making your home beautiful.

No longer would you be able to make trips to the boutique. No longer would you be able to stock it up for your guests. No longer would you get to live in this little fantasy land.  

Woken by a hand on your shoulder you pushed the hand away, annoyed you were woken so abruptly, “Go away Frank.” You mumbled.

“Not Frank.” Fuck. Why was Joel in your room waking you up?

“Oh,” You couldn’t bear to turn towards him. You adored him. Loved him even. But you didn’t want to go like this. Being forced outside your will. It hurt. Crushed you even. You didn’t want to take your anger out on Joel so best to keep your back turned to him. But God, you just wanted to scream. Yesterday you were just living your life as normal, as possible, that you could. Then Frank dropped the bomb and now you were just expected to go, “Sorry, Joel.” Meekly replying to the man, you shed a single tear. That’s the one thing you hated about yourself. How damn emotional you got. You couldn’t bottle it up even if you tried.

“S’fine.” He sighed not sure what to say. What could he say? He knew you didn’t want to go. Frank warned him and Tess once they got there. He knew just how devastated you likely were. Everything you knew was about to vanish. Joel had gone through that a few times. It wasn’t the best feeling. But he always survived. He knew you’d be just fine. And there was that sick twisted thought of happiness that you’d be close to him.

He tried to fight these feelings away. Tried his damn hardest. He knew you couldn’t really love in a world like this. How devastating it always ended. Nobody was ever really that lucky. Joel had loved hard and lost even harder. He swore he’d never let in anybody ever again. Tess was the closest and they were just partners. Nothing more. He loved her but he wasn’t in love with her.

Then you came along. All happy and shit. He swore he’d never love hard again but that promise seemed to crack each time he saw you. You never failed to put a smile on his usual stoic face. He resisted the urges for so long until he couldn’t any longer.

“Can you give me a moment?” You asked hoping he’d take the hint.

He nodded before realizing you were turned away from him, “Right, yeah. I’ll be at Bill’s place.”

“Okay.” You closed your eyes until you heard him close the door. Letting out the shaky breath you were holding. You watched from your window as Joel walked slowly back over to Bill’s place. Seemingly lost in thought.

You put on the fresh set of clothes that you always left over. A simple set of jeans, t-shirt, and a hoodie. Not believing it was really it you forced your legs to walk back over. You had to face the music sooner or later.

“Morning.” You nodded your head at Tess, the first person you saw sitting in the living room.

Giving you a sad smile, she nodded right back to you, “Morning.”

“Y/N.” You heard your brothers voice, “Bill made you a pack. It’s got everything you might need.”

Biting your lip, you took it gratefully. You really couldn’t have done it without either of them, “Thank you.”

“You’ll be okay out there.”

“Sure.”

Joel and Tess sat back watching the painful interaction. Tess nodding towards the door letting Joel know they needed to get out. They both snuck out without you or your brother really noticing. Both too caught up in whatever the hell this was.

“Y/N.”

“Spit it out Frank.”

“I don’t want you to hate me. I’m doing this for you. It’s best for you.” You leaned back into the wall crossing your arms. Choosing your words very wisely. This would be the last time you’d talk with him in this lifetime. You had to do this right. For his sake and yours.

“I don’t hate you. I could never hate you. I love you so fucking much it hurts.” You let a tear fall. Dammit here they came. The waterworks, “I just wish you’d let me be here for you but if you think this is best then I’ll go.”

“It’s best.”

Letting a few more tears slip you nodded your head, “Tell Bill that I love him. I love you, Frank.” You walked over hugging him tightly. Squeezing him so tightly you knew it was hurting him, but he didn’t dare say a word. You were hurt and grieving him even while he was still standing there.

Letting him go you gave him your best smile, “I’ll always love you, Frank.”

“And I’ll always love you. Be safe out there.”

“You know it.” You turned quickly walking towards the door. Shutting it behind you, you took a breath. Why did you have to be born into this world? What good fucking came out of all of this. What was the point?

Walking over to Joel and Tess, you gave them a quick head nod.

“You alright?” Tess asked.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

Joel looked a little too apprehensive seeing your blood shot eyes and rosy cheeks, “You sure?”

“Positive. Please, let’s go.”

“Alright, follow me.” Tess led the way. This was your life now. This was going to be just fine.

The walk back to the QZ was quiet and cold. You didn’t dare complain though. They were simply doing this as friends. Whatever the hell friends were. It only dawned on you as soon as you got close, without incident, that you were an outsider. How in the fuck was that going to work?

“Joel?” You asked one night shortly before you arrived.

“Hmm?” He stayed silent most of the way. Not ever knowing what to say to you. God, he wanted to be a source of comfort, but he hadn’t a clue how to be for you.

“How’s this going to work? I’m an outsider and all.”

He understood your concern, “It’s all taken care of. Tess got some paperwork made up. You’ll live with me for the time being and we’ll find you a job.”

“Cool,” You nodded. Pleasantly surprised that it had been so thought out, “Thanks Joel.”

“Sure.” He had a hard time looking at you. Knowing he’d cave for whatever friendly look you’d be giving his way.

“Thanks for everything Joel. Really. For protecting me and what not.” You mumbled feeling terribly awkward about it all. Even though you didn’t appreciate your life so much anymore it felt good to be looked after. To be wanted and taken care of.

“I’ll always protect you.”

Five – Twenty Years Post Outbreak: The Trip Back to Bill’s

“You don’t have to go in.” Joel stood at the gate blocking the path for you and Ellie.

You shook your head, “I’m okay.”

Ellie rolled her eyes, “Let’s fucking go then.”

Smiling at the girl you turned back towards Joel, “You heard the girl.”

He gave you a skeptical look, “You sure?”

“Yeah, I just won’t go in the house.” You kept your eyes forward, not darling to look at him.

He nodded turning back towards the overgrown town. Ellie walked past you keeping pace with Joel. Bugging him about something. You hung back taking a leisurely stroll through your old home. A place you called home for nearly fourteen years.

The usual green grass had turned a shade of brown without Frank’s attention to detail. The bright yellow flowers had been overgrown with weeds. A tug at your heartstrings knowing the worst had come to Frank. That was expected. His condition going from okay to tragic in a matter of a few months. What you didn’t expect was Bill taking his life too. Bill wouldn’t let this place go to shit. It was his home first.

Too quickly you made it back to the house. Joel looked back at you before he and Ellie went in. You nodded, letting him know it was alright. You made your way to the side of the house where your garden was. You strolled through the raised garden beds that were overgrown with who knows what now. It looked like the place hadn’t been touched in two years. He must’ve done it right after you left. They must’ve decided together. Without you.

Tears sprung to your eyes when you spotted the thriving strawberry patch. Somehow untouched by weeds or the animals around it your once small square of strawberries had grown tenfold. Seemingly thriving in this environment.

Squatting down you picked a ripe one. Turning it over in your hand a few times just thinking about Frank before you ate it. He would’ve loved to share one last one with you.

“To Frank.” You mumbled before taking the last bite, discarding the stem on the floor.

You sat down next to the strawberry patch grabbing a few more before you laid back onto the grass. Letting yourself feel sorry for yourself after everything. Knowing what Frank was going to do. Seeing Tess die in front of your eyes. Realizing Bill also left this world. Everyone you loved and cared for gone in a matter of two years.

Tess’s death hurt you the worst. One moment she was there and the next she wasn’t. So unexpected. You had time to process and grieve your brother’s death. Bills caught you off guard but didn’t surprise you completely.

Looking up to the sky you remembered a long-ago conversation with Tess about favorite colors. Sky Blue. It looked so pretty today. Not a single cloud in the sky. One big blue sky.

“Bill’s gone.” Joel’s voice interrupted your peaceful solace.

Flicking your eyes over to look at him you didn’t see Ellie behind him, “I know.”

“You, okay?” He took a seat next to you.

“Mhmm. I’m fine. Take a strawberry. They’re still good.” You smiled up at him continuing to lay on your back.

He did as you instructed, “They are.”

Giving him a genuine smile, you just felt comforted by his presence. He was the only constant in your life for the last two years. You’d grown far too attached to the man, but could you blame yourself? He was everything to you. You were so terrified that you’d lose him too. It’s all you seemed to be doing in the last two years.

“Get everything you need?”

“Yeah. Battery is charging for another hour or so.”

“Ellie?”

“She checking out the town. I told her about the boutique.”

Sitting up you looked over at him. He was so beautiful. The salt and pepper look throughout his hair only making him more attractive in your eyes. The scar that graced his cheek enhanced everything about him. His hair was at the perfect length where it flicked all over the place. He’d probably start complaining in a few weeks. Then you’d cut it and it’d be far too short, and you had to wait until it was your favorite length again.

“Maybe she’ll grab something.”

He nodded, “Power still works. Grab a shower while you can?” He stood up offering you a hand.

“Sure,” You took his hand in yours. Joel pulled you up gingerly. Always so careful with you, “Thanks Joel. I’m going to the house next door. It should still be stocked up.”

“Need a change of clothes?”

He was always so thoughtful with you. Never skipping a beat, always making you a priority. His way of showing just how much he loved you. And he did. Boy did he love you. He just had a hard time expressing it directly. Showing his love in other ways instead. He initially said no when Frank proposed you coming back with them to Boston. But when he heard his pleas through the radio, he knew what he needed to do.

He was surprised at how well you adapted out there. You knew your strengths, weaknesses. You knew how to be helpful and when to take a step back. You never complained either. Just wore a smile on your face instead. That was how you coped. Smile and walk. You’d be there soon enough. The first trip was the hardest. It got easier after that. Joel wouldn’t let you sneak out with him at first. Too scared you’d get hurt. But Tess eventually convinced him. Then you were off helping them out as you could.

“If you don’t mind? There should be some clothes in my room.”

“You got it.”

You’d known about Frank’s passing. Hoping to come to Bill’s for supplies. Lucky for you it hadn’t been raided, yet. Joel worked on getting the truck ready while you and Ellie showered.

You walked back over to Bill’s standing at the front door. You wanted to go in so bad, but it didn’t feel right. Something tell you that you shouldn’t.

“Hey, you hear me?”

You snapped out of the trance you seemed to be under, “No, sorry Joel, what’s up?”

“Come on, need your help loading up.” He motioned to the garage on the side of the house.

“Yeah, alright.” You jogged over to meet him, “Thanks for the clothes.”

“Mhmm.” He kept his gaze forward.

You really couldn’t take it much longer. The thought of losing yet another person with telling them how you felt just didn’t sit right any longer.

“You know I love you right?” You asked.

“What?” he paused looking taken aback at your sudden admittance.

“I love you, Joel.” You smiled a genuine smile. One that felt so good to do.

“You do?”

“Why do you look so surprised? Of course, I do. You’re everything to me.”

He gave you that brilliant smile that made you weak at the knees, “You love me, huh?”

You slapped his arm, “I love you. How many times are you going to make me say it?” You giggled feeling like he was loosening up. Softening even further as he saw your overexcited state

“I dunno.” He took a step towards you, “It sounds nice.”

“Yeah?” You asked transfixed on his gaze.

“Oh yeah, and you know what?” He asked.

“What’s that?”

“I think I love you too.” It felt strange admitting it out loud, but damn did it feel good. Right.

Your heart started racing, “You think?” Raising your eyebrows, you dared take a step closer to him.

He shook his head a bit upset by his choice of words. Always seeming to mess them up, “I know. I love you, Y/N.””

“I like the sound of that.” You didn’t let your smile fade only bigger. God did I feel good to get it out. You knew what his answer would be. He showed his love in other ways but damn did it feel good to hear.

“Yeah, now come here.”

[fag4dykestobin]

i kind of sat down and thought about steve and robin cooking together, and then i entered a fugue state and came out of it with a little over 1.7k words written about them being domestic besties (domesties?). so um. enjoy :)

-

Robin has destroyed one of her mom’s pans again, so she’s been banished to Steve’s house.

Well, okay, let’s back up.

Robin, waking up and feeling especially productive, had taken it upon herself to make some scrambled eggs. Nice and simple, right? So she had grabbed the first spatula and pan she could find, and… scrambled those eggs! She even remembered the salt and pepper! Unfortunately, as Robin had remembered after she oh-so-lovingly scraped off the nonstick coating, metal utensils and nonstick pans didn’t really get along. Oops. Panicking, she had scraped her mess into the trash and called Steve to pick her up. So, really, she had banished herself, preemptively.

“How the hell did you even do this much damage?” Steve asks, holding up the pan. The look of befuddlement on his face is picture perfect; you could teach children how to identify emotions with that face. Robin would pinch his cheek if she wasn’t so embarrassed.

“I don’t know! I just tried to make some eggs!”

“Rob, there’s like, a solid cube of—”

“A cube is a 3D object, dingus.”

“This is a 3D object!”

“Not in that way! It’s not a cube! You mean a square!”

Steve throws up his hands, one of them brandishing the pan and waving it around. “Fine! There’s a solid square…” Steve gives Robin a look. She nods her head at him in acquiescence. “... Of coating rubbed off of this thing. Why were you punishing your eggs like that?”

Robin leans back on the counter she’s been sitting on, legs swinging. Her heel hits the cabinet once, and Steve’s eye twitches, but he says nothing. Because he loves her. But she tries to avoid doing it again, for his sake. “I had to get that yolk distributed! I was working fast, Evie, the burner was on and I wanted it evenly mixed—!”

“So why didn’t you mix it in a bowl before that?!” Steve looks so stressed. It's kind of funny, given how unimportant the subject matter is. Robin suppresses a grin.

“I forgot! I was groggy!”

Steve groans, setting the ruined pan down and rubbing a hand over his face. “... When we move in together,” he says, pointing an accusatory finger at Robin, “I am keeping my metal utensils in a locked safe.”

The warm, fuzzy feeling that always appears when Robin is reminded of their future together, their permanence in each other’s lives, it fizzes and pops in her chest like a sparkler. It’s still such a comforting feeling, even after all these months.

It doesn’t stop her from antagonizing him a little. “Like I don’t know what combination you’ll set it to,” she scoffs.  “I could just break in. To spite you.”

Steve sits with that for a moment. “You’re breaking my heart, Robbie, you know that? You break my heart.” Not a real comeback. She’s won their battle of the bits, this time around.

“Well, anyway,” Steve continues, “I am really hoping you didn’t eat those eggs after seasoning them with metal filings.”

“It wasn’t— I don’t think the coating is metal. I don’t know what it is, actually, but I don’t think it falls under metal filings.”

Steve hmms. “Well, it’s not, like, plastic, right? Or silicone? That would just melt.”

“Yeah, you’re right. Well, it can’t be metal, because it loses a fight with metal spatulas.”

Steve thinks for a second. “Is… God, I mean, I guess there are other, other uh… what’s the word? For, like, not from plants?” Robin scrunches her brow in thought. “Synthetic? Inorganic?”

Steve snaps his fingers. “Yeah, both of those work. There’s probably things that aren’t plastic or metal that can be used to cook with, but it feels weird. That there’s another category out there.”

Robin nods in agreement, and they sit in companionable silence for a moment, contemplating on the nature of cookware.

“Anyway, no, I still haven’t eaten.”

Steve curses, gets up from leaning on his kitchen island, and steps over to the cabinets where he keeps his pots and pans. “Yes, God, okay, let me feed you. Still want eggs?”

“You know it!” Robin says, and Steve gets to cooking, bustling around the kitchen with practiced motions. It’s nice to watch him cook. He gets very focused, in a way that doesn’t usually come naturally to him. Steve doesn’t usually like talking while he’s cooking, but he hums bits of songs, bobs his head to the beat.

In no time at all he has a plate of scrambled eggs and toast in front of Robin, and she hops off the counter to sit at a stool at the kitchen island. She grabs the plate from Steve and smacks a wet kiss on his cheek, making him roll his eyes with a smile and subtly wipe her spit off.

Steve takes a seat across from her, and she notices that he doesn’t have anything. Did he already eat? “Did you already eat?” Robin asks.

Steve blinks. “Oh. No, I forgot.” He has a tendency to do that; when he cooks for someone, he can get so caught up in it that he forgets to make some for himself, and is left to scramble afterwards. “I’ll make myself some eggs after you’re done.”

An idea comes to mind. An attempt at redemption, maybe. “Let me?” Robin asks.

“And let you ruin my pans? No thanks.”

A flash of genuine hurt passes through Robin, and she lets it show on her face in the form of a pout. The comment isn’t unfounded, but… “No, please! I know what I did wrong, I’ll do better this time. I’m not sleepy anymore, either.” She just wants to take care of Steve like he takes care of her. She wants to feed him eggs, goddamnit! When was the last time anyone fed him eggs? Actually, if she thinks about that one, she’ll get sad, so she stops thinking about it.

Steve can obviously see her earnestness, and he softens. And rolls his eyes. But that’s just him being Steve, so Robin loves it. “Whatever you want, Birdie. Just don’t burn them. Oh, and use garlic powder.”

So Robin practically inhales the rest of her eggs and toast (very tasty, as always) and gets to work. Steve sits at his stool at the island, trying and failing not to watch Robin like a hawk as she bumbles around his kitchen (“That’s not enough garlic powder, Rob, put some more in there, it won’t bite!”  and “Use the small pan on the top shelf— no, the other small pan. No, the other—”), but she does eventually get a plate of eggs and toast in front of him. Not as good looking as the one Steve presented her, but it smelled good, and didn’t have weird inorganic pan flecks in them. Steve gives her a sloppy kiss on her cheek this time, over-exaggerating and putting way too much saliva in it, seriously, was he a dog or something? Robin BLECH’d and rubbed at her cheek, but he looked happy at his plate of food, so. Overall success, even if sacrifices had to be made.

Robin leaned on the island on her elbows, face a foot away from Steve’s as he picked up a forkful of egg. He side-eyed her.

“Do you… want some…?”

Robin waved a hand at him. “No, dingus. Eat it! Do you like it?”

“Okay, okay!” Steve rolled his eyes and ate his forkful. Robin stared at him as he chewed, looking out for emotions such as delight and wonder, but also disgust and revulsion.

She found nothing. Steve looked normal. He ate another forkful, eyeing her.

“So?” Robin prods.

“They’re eggs?” Steve says, mouth still half full.

“Swallow!” Steve rolls his eyes and does as she asks. “Nothing else? They’re just eggs?”

Steve nods, shrugging a little. Robin feels a little let-down. The first time Steve had made her eggs, it was life-changing. He put heavy cream in them. Robin doesn’t think her parents had ever bought heavy cream in their lives.

Robin guesses that it makes sense, though. This is just how he makes eggs, duh. Still, it makes her feel kind of bad, that she couldn’t give Steve the same feeling he gave her.

Steve seems to sense her inner turmoil. “They’re— it’s good, though! You did a good job. I do like it.” He seems kind of… embarrassed, but grateful. “You didn’t have to make them for me. Thanks.”

Robin bumps his shoulder with her own, and then retreats to her seat, allowing him a bit more personal space. But not too much! She kicks at his shins, and he kicks back, a smile on his face.

Cleanup is easy as Steve washes the dishes and Robin dries. It’s the small, domestic things, like this, that make her so excited to eventually live together. It’s so easy and companionable, full of chatter about band practice and Dustin’s latest science experiment. She can’t wait to graduate.

After the dishes, though, they’re both at the kitchen island again, silently staring at the pan Robin had ruined at her house earlier.

“... It seems like a waste to throw away,” Robin complains.

“I know, right? But it’s, like, useless now.”

Robin hums. “I mean, no, it’s still like… metal. I feel like we should be melting it down.”

Steve stares at her. “In what world would it be more useful melted down?”

Robin squawks, indignant at her idea being challenged. “You know what I mean!”

“No I don’t! Do you just want a, a… what’s the word? A bar of metal.”

“Ingot.”

“Do you just want an ingot hanging out on our mantelpiece?!”

“Well, I didn’t before, but now I do!”

They look at each other for only a moment before dissolving into simultaneous giggles, shared joy crackling and leaping between them.

Steve settles down first. Still grinning, he turns to put the pan at the very top of a relatively bare cupboard. “Fine, we’ll just… keep this to be melted down later.”

Robin can’t do anything to stop the twin grin on her face, not that she would ever want to. “I love you, Evie.” The words come easy, and the delight and surprise on Steve’s face is as wonderful as always. He pulls her into a hug.

“I love you too, Rob.”

[alea-says]

Hawaii Five-0, 8x06 thoughts...

Okay, this episode is just awesome so far! We get to have shirtless Steve, and Danny waiting for him to return from his swim and calling him his BFF.

Then there's a crazy intervention where obviously everyone decided it was better to go along with Danny than let him keep worrying about Steve

And Kamekona found a way to monetise it!

And now Steve's being followed around by a stress consultant who wants to know if he's having regular sex - which means there's another insane 'correct quote' where Danny actually says "are you having regular sex"

And of course they both look at each other when she asks that. Like, Steve you're talking about your girlfriend (who, oops, I forgot you had, again, seeing as we never see her around), why you gotta check in with Danny before answering if you're having regular sex?

And now Danny is arguing with Steve about how often he has sex. This is insane.

Okay. So Danny and Melissa discuss Steve's sex life? Really?

(And honestly, I'm kinda surprised by any of the numbers they're throwing out considering how little we see of Lynn, when's Steve got time between swimming, working, risking his life and hanging out with Danny to be having any sex?)

The poor sex consultant's face. She does not know how to respond. It's okay, girl, neither do we.

And now the stress consultant is suggesting Danny's convo in the car with Steve was rather heated. Like, that was tame.

Oh dear, how often do those conversations happen, Danny, one or twice a month? Lol.

And she wants him to keep his conversations with Steve centred around work.

And now Danny's mentioned the restaurant. Her face. This woman is starting to understand.

Oh dear. Now Steve's worried about Danny because Danny isn't telling him off for his driving.

Danny, you love Steve so much and you're trying so hard, babe. It's okay, Steve likes it when you two argue. It's how you flirt.

But of course first Steve has to tease Danny about it.

Steve doesn't want to do what the stress consultant says, but first he's gotta tell Danny he doesn't want to and check in with his partner because he cares what Danny thinks.

And now they're having a proper convo. Danny is stressed about Steve. And now Steve's sharing his feelings and admitting he's scared too, and talking about kids and watching Grace and Charlie grow up. Oh, and don't change Danny, I love you the way you are. ❤️

This stupid show. ❤️

[ladykailitha]

Royal Pain Part 3

Hello! I was going to post this yesterday but I thought I would be busier for WIP Wednesday which only two people participated in (sad author noises). And then I was waffling about putting up a meta about Steve’s parents (I ended up just saving it in my ‘bit of everything’ file). And then I realized it was super late and should put this up before I forget again.

This next part is for @weirdandabsurd42  who mentioned being excited to see Wayne and was thusly added (because I almost forgot to put him there, oops!), thereby creating one of my favorite lines I’ve ever written so...thanks! 

Part 1 Part 2

***

Steve closed up his shop with a spring in his step and a grumpy Robin following behind.

“I can’t believe you are dragging me to a metal concert,” she groused as she locked the door behind her.

“You don’t have to come,” Steve said with a grin. “You can stay home on a Saturday, all by yourself with a pint of ice cream and the latest rom-com.”

Robin glared at him. “You know that I have to come with you so you don’t throw yourself at Eddie.”

Steve rolled his eyes as they walked to his car. “I’m not going to throw myself at him.”

Robin clutched her hands to her chest. “Oh that’s right I forgot! You already have!”

Steve glared at her. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“No?” she asked, sliding into the car. “So what do you call offering to do his back tattoo?”

Steve already in the car, hit his head on his steering wheel. “Fucccckkkk.” He hit it over and over. “Why did I do that? Why did he agree? What am I going to do?”

Robin rubbed his back. “I think this is good thing for you. If you do well on his wings then you can start doing large pieces again. And if not, then you know it’s not something you can do and you’ll never do another one ever again.”

Steve sighed and wrapped his arms around the steering wheel. “I just wanted him to like me.”

“As person, as friend or as a boyfriend?” Robin asked seriously.

“All of the above?” Steve said raising his head to look at her. “Apparently the first one has been met. I’d take the second one, but I would love the last one more than anything.”

“Well this weekend will be a great opportunity to test the waters and see how he feels. Because even if he wants to be friends now, there’s still a chance he might want something more in the future. Just don’t bank on it.”

Steve nodded. “Yeah.” He took a deep breath. “Yeah, okay.” He turned the key and pulled out of their parking lot.

“This would be a good time to get a couple of apprentices of your own,” she said after a few miles of silence. “You’re going to be spending a lot of hours on Eddie’s tattoo and you’re going to need someone to pick up the slack.”

Steve let out a shuddering sigh. “I know. I’ll start putting out feelers in the community and see what’s out there.”

Robin nodded. “We’ll put up filers at the local colleges and universities as well as putting it up on our website. I’ll talk to Will and see what he can come up with for both.”

“I know he’ll turn it down but offer him the usual rates for that sort of thing,” Steve agreed.

Robin laughed. “Fingers crossed he’ll accept this time.”

*

Eddie walked into his apartment and flopped face first into his couch. It had been such a whirlwind day. He wasn’t even sure he could function. That really was the downside to having a full time gig. Having all this free time.

Because yeah, Eddie and the rest of Corroded Coffin practiced nearly every day, and they were always coming up with new music, it just wasn’t the same as full time job. He didn’t have to do anything but show up and perform two nights a week. He could phone it in if he wanted.

Not that he would. Just...that he could. Which meant on days when his head was spiraling he could stew for days and never leave this couch.

He rolled over and pulled out his phone and dialed that familiar number.

“Munson residence!” came the gruff familiar voice.

“When are you going to at least get a caller ID, old man!” Eddie crowed.

“Shut it, boy,” Wayne growled. “I have one and it works just fine, the greeting is polite. Something I thought I raised you better in.”

Eddie giggled. “You love me.”

“Lord help me, but I do,” Wayne agreed. “You calling to talk or to listen?”

It was something that they had established long before Eddie left Hawkins to live on his own in the big city. Long before before Eddie took three years to graduate. Long before Al Munson abandoned his son on his baby brother’s door step for one last job. A job that would land him in prison. They had this code. Well, not really a code.

Just this thing between them. When Eddie had a rough day, he would call Wayne. But depending on the swirling of emotions going through his head, sometimes he just need to hear Wayne talk about his day. Gossip about his neighbors. Let the words flow over him until he felt at ease enough to go to sleep.

Other nights, though. The really bad ones. The ones where Eddie needed advice, he would talk. Sometimes Eddie would figure it out on his own, other times he would need Wayne to give him advice. This was one of those nights.

“Talk,” Eddie breathed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Wha’cha got, Ed?” Wayne asked gently.

And Eddie just let it all spill out. The tattoos, Steve, the band, feeling like they had stagnated.

“That’s a lot on your plate, boy,” Wayne said. “I can see why you wanted to share.”

Eddie let out a shuddering sigh. “I don’t know what to do about...well any of it to be honest.”

Wayne hummed. “When was the last time you went out and did something fun? Something for just yourself? And don’t say get a tattoo because that’s part of the tangled mess right now.”

Eddie blinked. When was the last time he had gone out for drinks, saw a movie, or even listened to music other than his own? “I’m not sure.”

“Well there you go,” Wayne said. “Creativity isn’t endless, boy. It’s a well and you’re going through a drought because you aren’t taking in any influences other then that feedback loop you’re on.”

“Oh.”

“It doesn’t have to be with your friends or even that boy you’ve got your eye on,” Wayne explained. “Just go out and have fun for yourself, ya hear?”

“Yeah,” Eddie said, already feeling lighter. “Thanks, Uncle Wayne.”

“Rest well, okay?” Wayne murmured.

“You too.”

*

Jeff shook his head and rolled his eyes as he watched Eddie play with his rings, his knee bouncing up and down.

“Chill!” Gareth growled. “For fuck’s sake. We are professionals, we’ve done this twice a week for years. What’s got your panties in a twist this time?”

Jeff wagged his eyebrows. “This time pretty boy Steve Harrington is going to be in the crowd. With a girl no less.”

“She’s gay,” Eddie bit out. “A literal flaming lesbian. I just have to pass the best friend test with her. And considering she wanted me to get his number, I’m pretty sure I don’t have to work that hard.”

“I noticed you didn’t deny that you’re nervous about Pretty Boy being in the audience tonight,” Brian teased.

Eddie threw up his hands in the air and leapt to his feet. “All right, yeah. I’m nervous. Even when I did have boyfriends that would show up, I knew they liked the music. But I have no idea if Steve is just being nice or if he’s actually interested in hearing us play.”

Jeff cocked his head. “Yeah, I can see how you might be worried he won’t like it. But if he doesn’t, isn’t better you know that now, before your feelings get in too deep?”

Eddie’s lip quivered. “Yes. I mean, of course. But it still makes me feel like crawling out of my skin, okay?”

“Okay,” Gareth said. “So do what you do best and throw yourself into the music. Let it wash over you. You are a consummate performer. So kick ass.”

Eddie nodded and the nod slowly turned into a head bang with him playing air guitar. By the time the knock came to let them know it was time, Eddie was ready to go out there and rock.

*

Steve hadn’t been to The Nightmare Holes before. It hadn’t even been on his radar at all. That was so weird, especially since it was almost literally doors down from Robin and his favorite club.

Well that was until they were dropped off in front of a large concrete building that didn’t look like a bar from the outside at any stretch of the imagination. In fact the only thing that stuck out at all was a neon sign with a large arrow pointing to a set of stairs leading down proclaiming this to be The Nightmare Holes.

When they got into the bar, Steve realized that they were going to stick out like a sore thumb. With Steve looking prep and Robin looking punk, they were going to be murdered before Eddie even got on stage.

They were saved by a goddess if you believed Robin later. This pretty woman in a tank top and tight leather pants with four inch heeled boots came up to them.

“Hey!” she greeted warmly. “You must be Stevie, right?”

Steve nodded. “I’m afraid you’re one up on me. You know me, but I don’t know you.”

She smiled much to Robin’s chagrin. “I’m Miranda, girlfriend of the rhythm guitarist, Jeff Lawrence. He was worried that Eddie might have forgotten to tell you that wearing your usual clothes might make you stand out.” She waved her hands at them. Both Robin and Steve blushed. “You aren’t too bad actually. I was think you would be much worse the way Jeff was going on.”

“He only saw us at work,” Robin explained once she picked her jaw up off the ground. “He might have assumed that we wear that on the regular.”

Miranda nodded. “You can do this one of two ways. Stay dressed as you are as big middle finger to conformity no matter who’s conforming to what or you come with me and I can tweak your looks enough that you don’t stand out as much.”

Steve looked down at his clothes and tilted his head. “I think I’m going to give conformity the middle finger, thanks. I’ve been bucking what people think a tattoo artist should look like for years. I’m not going to change that for one little concert.”

Miranda nodded appreciatively. “Good on you. How about you, princess? You gonna give conformity the middle finger, too?”

Robin looked down at her clothes and blushed. “I think most metalheads would say a punk is being a step too far.”

Miranda laughed. “You’re probably right. Let’s go see if I can metal you up a bit.”

The two ladies came back a few minutes later. Robin still had her chunky jewelry and smudged makeup. But her billowy plaid pants were replaced by tight black jeans and instead of her vest, she wore a black jacket. Her hair had been tamed to a more relaxed style.

Steve grinned at her. “Looking good, Robs!”

Robin blushed. “I made a new friend.”

Miranda laughed. “Thanks for that.” She looked around and then leaned forward conspiratorially. “Just a little secret between us new besties.”

Steve and Robin shared a glance, but both nodded.

“I don’t like metal music, either,” she whispered and winked. She turned around so she faced the stage. “But I’m here because my Jeffie does. So if you don’t like the music, because hey, you might not, don’t sweat it. They put on a good show and we’re here for them.” She jutted her chin up at the stage just as the house lights went down and the stage lights went up.

Standing the spotlight was Eddie. He wore a slashed up band shirt, tight jeans, and his leather jacket. A jacket Steve was about to learn wasn’t going to feature long. About twenty minutes into the show, the jacket was gone and Steve could see a peek of the new tattoo through the slits in the shirt.

He licked his lips slowly. Ooh...that was tantalizing. And then Eddie threw caution and his shirt to the wind and everyone saw Eddie’s new tattoo.

Robin turned to Steve wide-eyed. “Holy shit, it blends seamlessly into the rest of the tattoos, like it was there first.”

Miranda peered around Robin to look at Steve, too. “Yeah, man. You did a hell of a job. You should be proud of that.”

Steve was. No doubt. But he was prouder of the fact that Eddie wanted everyone to see it. It melted his heart and settled at the base of his spine, like he had drank a cup of hot chocolate all at once.

And that was when Steve realized he would do anything for Eddie. Even if that meant just being friends.

***

My new favorite line? * “Lord help me, but I do,” Wayne agreed. “You calling to talk or to listen?” * It’s just so...Wayne, you know?

Part 4  Part 5 Part 6  Part 7  Part 8  Part 9  Part 10  Part 11 Part 12  Part 13 Part 14  Part 15  Part 16 Part 17  Part 18 Part 19  Part 20  Part 21 Part 22  Part 23  Part 24  Part 25 Part 26  Part 27  Part 28  Epilogue

Tag List: @spectrum-spectre @estrellami-1 @zerokrox-blog @artiststarme @swimmingbirdrunningrock @gregre369 @pyrohonk @renaissan-vvitch @goodolefashionedloverboi @chaoticlovingdreamer @maya-custodios-dionach @messrs-weasley @val-from-lawrence @plyerice27 @thedragonsaunt @chaoticlovingdreamer @sapphirecobalt-1 @a-little-unsteddie @i-must-potato @danili666  @carlyv @rozzieroos @wonderland-girl143-blog @itsall-taken @justforthedead89 @emly03 @bookworm0690 @aizawa-emma  @yikes-a-bee @redfreckledwolf @thesuninyaface @bookbinderbitch @littlewildflowerkitten @scheodingers-muppet @archermightbegay @hallucinatedjosten 

[opossumloverr]

✞°•I DON'T BELIEVE IN GHOSTS•°✞

(Based on this song, I know you know this song. don't lie to me)

Summary:

Turtle bros with a ghost reader!

Warning(s):

Some cursing!

A/N:

I MUST BE DREAMING CAUSE I DON'T BELIEVE IN GHOST YEAH, sorry, anyways, idk I just felt a little silly today, and I really do love this song. also I'm trying a different style DONT BULLY ME IT TOOK ME LIKE AN HOUR TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO GRADIENT

It was a chilly October night, the leaves rustled as the four brothers made their way towards an abandoned graveyard. The atmosphere was dark and gloomy, but they were determined to explore the area, for reasons unknown to anyone but themselves.

"I don't like this, guys. Let's turn back," the youngest brother, Mikey, shivered.

"What? No way! You said you were bored, Mikey. This is exactly what we need to get our blood pumping!" another brother exclaimed.

"He was bored, Leo, not us. You didn't have to drag us all here," one of the brothers groaned in annoyance.

"Sorry that Mr. Bootyshaker9000 wanted to stay indoors and rot. I'm preventing the inevitable!" Leo clapped back.

"I'm trying to prevent hitting you with my Tech Bo," Donnie gripped his weapon tighter.

"Try it, you won't," Leo egged Donnie on.

"You little…" Donnie scowled, lifting his weapon before getting interrupted.

"Enough! Fighting is not the memo right now! Now you two cut it out or else I'll…wait, what was that?" the oldest brother paused on his scolding to scope out the area. A pungent smell of perfume floated in the air, and chills went down their spines.

"I'm getting really bad vibes here! I told you we should've gone back to the lair!" Mikey exclaimed.

"Don't be such a party pooper, Mike! It's probably all in our heads," Leo tried to come up with a reasonable explanation, but a gust of wind shut off all of his thoughts.

"What was that?!" Raph exclaimed.

"It's a ghost!" Mikey chattered.

"That is preposterous, Michael. There is no such thing as a ghost-"

"No, he's right."

They all screamed in unison, clinging onto Raph. "AH!"

《RAPH》

After the shock and some failed punching attempts, he finally decided to talk instead of fight, and it was a delightful conversation

yall sat down and talked for hours, He asked a few questions, and you answered them

he made sure not to ask personal questions, like how you died and stuff (unlike Donnie, that insensitive prick)

was kinda sad when he had to go, but gotta make sure pops doesn't worry,

he promises he'll see you again

a few weeks later you show up in his room, sitting down calmly on his bed, or, erm, floating.

he threw multiple items at you before calming down and realizing that it was you, what were you doing here? how did you know where he lives?

all of those questions were brushed off when he heard that you just wanted to see him, and only him.

his heart pounded in his plastron, you wanted to see him? big ol' him? cue huge tail thumping into the ground

yall talked for HOURS, him talking about Lou Jitsu- wait, you've never watched Lou Jitsu? he's inviting you to family movie night. there's no getting out of this.

over the months, the both of you got close, he no longer throws objects or tries to throw hands when he sees you!

enjoys the company when he lifts weights

"Wow, those seem heavy," you said, impressed by his muscles as he lifted the weights. 

"They are heavy, but don't worry, Raph's got gains!" he replied, flexing his muscles with a curl-up. 

"Can I try?" you asked, reaching out your hands. 

"Sure, but be careful. I'll be here to spot ya!" he said, passing the weights to you. 

However, you forgot that you were transparent and accidentally dropped the weights on his tail, causing him to scream in pain. 

"Oops! I forget I'm transparent sometimes... You just make me feel so alive..." you said sheepishly. 

"I-I make you feel alive?" he questioned, seemingly forgetting the intense pain in his tail.

HES SOSOSO SILLY GUYS I CAN'T

《LEO》

He had never sliced a portal open this fast

before he could dive head-first into his portal you floated in front of it

you just wanted to talk... okay... but he's keeping a close eye on you

a few minutes later he's blabbing about Jupiter Jim to you, you've never watched it? what? do you live under a rock? or... a grave...

and you seem so interested! he could talk about it for hours! you know he could.

he literally clung onto the ground when it was time to leave, complaining as Raph dragged him away

he shouted a quick "See you soon"

he saw you soon alright, in his room, looking at his pile of Jupiter Jim comics curiously

He literally screamed like a girl

Oh! it's just you... where did you come from? oh, you just wanted to see him, not his brothers? him?

boosts up his ego by 100x

"I knew you couldn't get enough of me" type of energy

proceeds to yap about Jupiter Jim some more, what? it's YOUR fault for indulging in his hyperfixations

yall are the talker and listener duo

"And so Jupiter Jim was all like- pew pew pew! and the aliens were all like- Ohno! and then- hey, hey [NAME], are ya listening?" He questioned,

"Mhm, go on, I'm all ears"

Leo's eyes widened, and small churrs could be heard "OKOK! And then Jupiter Jim was all like, no way jose!"

He just like me fr

《DONNIE》

There is no logical way this could be happening! ghosts? really?

immediately started asking questions, why do you exist? how do you exist? would you perhaps be interested in some experiments, y'know, for scientific purposes (definitely not for his own personal questions)

his questions just kept on coming and coming, some of them being more insensitive than the last, he would've said more if Raph didn't smack him on top of the head...

but you were happy to answer them non the less

when they had to skedaddle he was pissed, how dare they interrupt! can't you see there was science in the making?

he says he'll come to you, for more questions of course, nothing more... (cap)

he didn't expect you to come to him.

he jumped a little but then started going into his "I ask you, answer" mode

Experiments on you (with consent ofc)

discovers you have telekinesis

you two grew close, his experiments died down the more he learned about you

now, he just really enjoys the company

just knowing that you're there watching him while he tackles a project gets him so motivated

you're like his little assistant

"[NAME], be a dear and pass me that wrench over there," he asks, hand out, palm open,

"You got it boss" you floated the wrench toward him, and he grabbed it

"Thank you, you really are a great help, [NAME]"

"Just glad to be here Don-tron!" you smiled, not noticing the slight wag to his tail.

He really appreciates you

《MIKEY》

He just kept screaming and screaming until you snapped him out of it

what? why aren't you trying to take his body? and why aren't you freakishly creepy, you just looked like a normal person, minus the floating and transparency

Oh, you just wanted to talk? well, as long as you don't possess his body he's all for it!

The conversation was amazing! he got so much more information about ghosts, he's even more fixated on them now!

you got this turtle laying on the ground, twirling his mask tails in his fingers, kicking his feet, saying "Ooh! Tell me more!"

was whining like a puppy dog when he had to get up on out of there, puppy dog eyes did not work in his favor tonight..

he swears up and down that he will visit you, just wait!

I guess you've waited long enough, because the following week you were caught snooping around his room

he screamed, yes, he won't lie.

but it's not his fault that you popped up out of nowhere!

then starts talking to you like he didn't scream like 100 decibels

Just yip yap yapping away, but you don't mind, you enjoy socializing with him

kinda sad that he can't touch you though, sometimes he wants nothing more than to wrap his arms around you

you're his muse! asks you to pose for him, and you happily oblige

"Okay just keep that position, right there, perfect! such an amazing muse for me!" He smiles,

"Well, it's easy to pose when I have such a wonderful artist painting me" You replied,

"Awe shucks, don't compliment me like that! you're going to give me an ego" he chirps happily

lala and okok duo. that's all I have to say.

BOO! HAPPY NEW YEARS GUYS OMGOMG 2024 IS HOPEFULLY GONNA BE A GREAT YEAR, HERES A LIL DITTY I WROTE, I HOPE YA LIKE IT, IM GETTING ON MY GRIND RIGHT NOW, I love ya! Merry 24, also I was watching Coryxkenshin while writing, shout out to the shogun. There also MIGHT be some grammar mistakes, kinda rushed to get this out

[euthymiya]

I might be way too late but if u still want selfship headcanons I am at any given time very likely thinking about sprinting down a big fancy staircase n throwing myself into Capitano’s arms bc he came home earlier than expected (and then feeling very sheepish bc I didn’t think abt how many people were gathered to witness that oops) thank u

When the maids of Zapolyarny Palace enter your chambers to tell you His Lord has arrived, my lady, it doesn’t occur to you that they’d witness this. You’re too busy running down the stairs to think clearly.

“You’re back early,” you breathe, arms circling his neck as you throw your weight off the last few steps. He catches you easily, a muscled arm wrapping around your waist. It holds you against his sturdy chest, bringing you closer, closer, closer.

The cool metal of his helmet against your cheek is comforting as he leans in—you almost forgot how much you missed it.

“I am,” he responds, the fond lilt to his voice earning a beam from you. “Is it a pleasant surprise?”

“You should’ve wrote to me,” you click your teeth, “I’d have prepared accordingly, my lord.”

“Prepared?” He perks, a smile in his voice that borders on smug. “Would you, now? You spoil me, then, little wife.”

It doesn’t occur to you that the maids are there to witness every second of your reunion until you hear the distant giggle. One glimpse across the long hall and you notice they’ve paused their cleaning to eye you and your husband. Surely, they’ve heard every word, you realize.

Suddenly, you want the curtains to swallow you whole.

“Not like that,” you flush, “is there not one proper thought in that head of yours? Every new letter proves otherwise.”

“You wound me,” he hums, “what shame is there to have from desiring my wife—”

“Enough,” you whisper, “the maids can hear you.”

“Ah. Is that the problem?” He asks lowly, wrapping another arm around your waist and pulling your body closer, ascending up the stairs as you gasp at the gesture. “Then by all means, let’s continue this in our chambers. Surely, the maids know their place not to interrupt.”

[three-dee-ess]

three-dee-ess Frequently Asked Questions

How do you mod a 3DS?

just go here -> https://3ds.hacks.guide/

Will I get in trouble for modding my 3DS?

not really. Nintendo no longer officially supports the 3DS. they certainly don't approve of 3DS modding but it's not like they are going to take legal action against you personally. I'm not a lawyer though.

Will Nintendo ban me online?

Nintendo already shut down the servers, so effectively we are all banned- even if your 3DS isn't hacked.

Is hacking your 3DS illegal?

No, as long as it's your personal property, it's not illegal. It's not illegal to paint a 3DS, or throw it into a toilet, or eat it, and hacking is just another way of modifying the 3DS.

How do you identify 3DS's?

I look at them. I'll make a better guide for this later but pretty much every model of DS has a unique identifier that differentiates it from the others in a big way. (Example being the DSi's huge camera)

How do you get games for the 3DS?

hshop (AKA 3HS)

What is netpass?

It's streetpass but it uses the internet instead! Install it from universal updater, or from here.

How'd you make your banner/What's a miitomo?

I used photopea and Miitomo with the Kaeru patcher. Miitomo is an abandoned nintendo social media app where you could create a custom mii. The main feature is the ability to take photos of your mii in silly outfits and poses.

You forgot/mistagged X post (Or you missed a TW)!

oops plz send me an ask and ill fix it asap :3c

What are your pronouns?

she/her!

Whats the tagging system?

#asks <- asks

#3ds post <- 3ds posts

#ds post <- DS specific posts

#dsi post <- DSi specific posts

#3DS inspo <- DS showoff tag

#cfw <- post contains reference to custom firmware (hacking)

#my thoughts <- ill tag any posts with my opinions on stuff here so yall can search through :3c

#<- assist needed • basically I need help with whatever question is being posed in the previous tag! go through this tag if you are knowledgeable about Pokemon games in particular for the most part.

#<specific 3DS model + color> <- if i've identified a 3DS it'll be tagged with the color and then the model. (EX 'red n3DSxl')

Can I submit a 3DS/DS image?

yes please do!! like actually if you own a 3DS even a bad photo is perfectly fine.

What does :3c mean?

it's just a cat face with a little paw. I use it a lot for funzies.

[reveristcalicocan]

GENSHIN MEN WALKING IN ON YOU CHANGING/IN LINGERIE. F!Reader

Characters: Albedo, Al Haitham, Childe, Cyno, Diluc, Kazuha, Ayato, Heizou, Wanderer.

Warnings: Slight nudity, suggestive, touching, unrealistic body, mentions of seasickness and throwing up in kazuha’s

ALBEDO

Now, he obviously didn’t mean to… It’s not like there was any privacy up in his camp in dragonspine. You just didn’t expect him to come back so soon.

Letting your skirt drop onto the floor, you bent down to get your clothes. Albedo who had involuntarily walked in on this didn’t say anything to alert you of his presence. Instead he just watched your ass high up in the air with that lace underwear of yours.

He couldn’t help but feel a little flustered, quietly walking away and acting as if he didn’t see anything.

AL HAITHAM

As the acting grand sage, he was very busy. Especially when the dendro archon herself had made so many important requests to change the rules of Sumeru.

He hadn’t been home for two days, constantly working and taking short naps in his office. So when he finally went back home one day, he wasn’t expecting to see you in your shared bedroom almost completely naked safe for your underwear and bra.

The files he was previously holding dropped to the floor, grabbing your attention. Seeing Al Haitham again made you forget about your current situation. You greeted him cheerfully, going in for a tight hug.

Al Haitham on the other hand… he could feel your soft breasts pressing against him. He wrapped his arms around you too, grabbing your waists before throwing you over his shoulder and pushing you onto the bed.

CHILDE

Hah! This is another one, he would definitely make his presence known to you.

“Oh my, isn’t this a sight…” Childe had just entered your room to see if you were home only to find you in a cute purple lingerie.

Your face flushed red at his teasing, scrambling to cover yourself with your clothes. Childe grabbed your arm, taking your shirt away from you.

Feeling exposed and self conscious, you wrapped your arms around your stomach, looking downwards not meeting his gaze.

“C’mon! There’s nothing to be embarrassed about!” After Childe finally got you to show him your full self, he tugged at the elastic of your panties, pulling them down ever so slightly.

CYNO

Oops.

Cyno’s eyes grew wide, he was so extremely exhausted from the previous mission he completely forgot to knock. Hearing the sound of the door being opened, you looked back to see Cyno standing there, unmoving.

Neither of you said a thing for a while. That was until you opened your mouth to ask the age old question.

“um, Cyno, could you please leave for a bit…?” Suddenly realising his staring, Cyno immediately dashed out of your room.

“H-hey! close the door!”

DILUC

Oh, he had only ever seen your body twice, both were in dim lighting. So this was new to him. He was entranced by your body, so unlike the gentleman he usually is, he couldn’t help but stay standing there.

You unclasped your bra and Diluc could see your plump breasts bouncing. His mind fogged over with dirty thoughts, seeing your body like this was far more entertaining than anything else.

It was a good thing you didn’t realise he had been watching the entire time, or he definitely wouldn’t be able to live it down.

KAZUHA

You probably got seasick and accidentally got some vomit on your clothes. So after removing your previously soiled clothes, you were going to change into your new clothes when Kazuha’s soft voice suddenly rang out from behind you.

“ah, apologies. It seems i should have knocked, i’ll come back later,” Before you got to see him, the door had already closed and you were left feeling flustered and embarrassed.

Kazuha didn’t think too much of it, he simply brushed it off and never brought it up again. He knew you’d be uncomfortable if he reminded you, so being the gentleman he is, he kept his mouth shut.

AYATO

“Perhaps you should lock the door next time…” Ayato leaned against your doorframe staring at your body.

He would never say it but the sight of you in your red thongs turned him on. The way the red fabric wrapped around your hips and your exposed ass made his pants feel tight. A smirk danced at his lips seeing your shocked expression.

You chased him out of your room, yelling and screaming at him in embarrassment.

HEIZOU

“hm, looks good!” He gave a close eyed smile.

You, who were unaware of an intruder watching you change jumped and let out a yelp. He had never seen you without proper clothes before so you panicked and scrambled to find your words.

However, Heizou just had a positive and happy smile on his face, making you feel a little less insecure of yourself. After that incident you would sometimes wear more revealing clothes when around him.

WANDERER

See he just had to walk in on you when you were changing. Not even a minute earlier or later. He’s never seen a woman’s body before, so the sight of you wrapping a hand around your waist to remove your underwear didn’t phase him in the slightest.

He stood and watched you change without a sound, when you turned and saw him just standing there, you could have sworn you saw your soul jump out of your body.

“H-how long have you been standing there?” You sweat dropped, hoping that he just arrived.

“Since you started removing your underwear and bra.” A monotonous voice, you noted.

Your face heated up even more, a blush spreading like wild fire. It was him who spoke first.

“Can you take it off? I want to see you…” Your head shot up at his request.

You knew he didn’t have much experience and or knowledge of the human body but for such an upright question, you were caught completely off guard.

Slowly, you removed your clothes, stripping down in front of him until you were left with your undergarments.

“Wait… can I do it?” The Wanderer walked towards you, he was slightly taller than you.

“oh, uh sure!” Another question that caught you off guard.

He looked into your eyes while unclasping your bra, his hands smoothed against your soft breasts. Letting your bra fall onto the ground, he continued to kneel down to remove your underwear.

Being so close to him made you rather… horny.

You were turned on to say the least. Especially when he caressed your breasts ever so gently.

Looking away in embarrassment, the wanderer had accidentally touched your clit while he pulled your underwear down, making you let out a gasp.

Unbeknownst to you, he knew what he was doing. He could see the slick covering your pussy along with a part of your underwear.

“Let me help,” Picking you up, the wanderer pushed you down onto your bed before moving his head in between your thighs.

[jewel9887]

Intrulogical Week Day 6 Inventions

https://archiveofourown.org/series/4461559 Part 1-3 are here

This is late but it didn't want to work with me. Day 7 is coming soonish

Part 4: Park Finds

"Why couldn't Dad take us to the park?" asks Patton, swinging his hand in Logan's.

"He has to get ready for work and leave before Roman's class is over and be able to come get you three. It's his turn to make dinner as well," Remus answers.

"Yeah he said he was making some sort of pasta," Virgil chimes in.

"Am I staying for dinner?" asks Janus holding Remus's hand. 

“Of course, silly snake! That's what's included in a sleepover! Our first one!" Patton excitedly exclaims. "And Memus and Loganberry will be there later for movies and cookies."

"Yes and I did promise that I'll make thumbprint cookies for everyone," Logan reminds them.

"So what do you guys want to do at the park?" Remus asks.

They continue walking and chatting about what each wants to do. Virgil wants to go on the swings and maybe skateboard, Patton and Janus want to go down the slide a few dozen times and Patton has a new game that he invented to teach everyone to play. Logan hopes to get some reading done before his class but knows it is pointless while watching all three boys and making sure his boyfriend doesn't get rebanned from this park which he will argue was not his fault…this time. 

Logan smiles thinking back to a year ago months after their first date which was followed by many more although they both agreed to take their relationship slow.

*****

When Roman (who had got a second chance only because the coffee shop called and begged Remus to cover a shift and never forgot the boys since) came to drop the boys off at the library for crafts. Before Roman could leave, he told them he had a question to ask the three of them.

"I know this is an unusual question but can I date Remus and are you guys okay with me being his boyfriend? The reason I am asking this; is because of how close Remus is to you three and practically helping you, Roman, raise Patton and Virgil," Logan asks, fixing his already straight tie.

"Dude, I gave you my permission after the museum date, anyone who can make Remus speechless is like that is just what he needs and perfect in my book," Roman assures Logan.

"Yeah, it takes a special kind of crazy to be willing to make a bet with Remus and drink an unknown drink plus you are fun to do puzzles with," Virgil says with a smile.

"Memus is more smiley and huggy and you make fun puns. Does this mean I get another older brother?" Patton turns to Roman. 

“That is up to Remus and Logan but I'm pretty sure yes," Roman says ruffling Patton's hair.

"YAY!" Patton yells throwing himself at Logan for a hug then whispers "Oops sorry forgot library voice." 

"I think we answered your question, Logan," Virgil smirks trying not to laugh and Roman doesn't even try to hide his laughter.

"Yes thank you and I consider you two my little brothers too," Logan says, bending down to fully hug Patton who grabbed Virgil pulling him into the hug.

Roman managed to take a picture without the other three noticing and sent it to Remus.

"Okay, I'll be back to pick you guys up. See ya."

*****

"What's got you smiling, my nerd?" Remus asks, pulling Logan out of the memory.

"Just how much I love you and your brothers," Logan replies honestly, making Remus blush.

"Remus, Logan, did either of you remember the sunscreen," Virgil asks before Remus can make a flirty comment back.

"Of course I did," Logan responds, "And I got everyone water, your knee and elbow pads, and this stuffed fish I'm not sure why but Patton insisted it was required for his new game." 

"YEAH! Patton makes up the best games at school," Janus yells, "It's how we met."

"That is a story for another day because we have arrived. Now remember the main rules," Remus reminds the boys.

"If I can't see you or Logan, I'm too far,"

"Try not to get hurt but things happen,"

"Have fun but be safe,"

All three boys list off.

"Perfect, now go cause some havoc." Remus smiles proudly making shooing motions.

The boys run off to play. Patton and Janus are heading to the slides and Virgil is taking off to the swing set.

Remus convinces Logan to play on the monkey bars. Logan has long since learned it is better to go along with Remus's antics and he always has more fun than if he did what was expected. 

After a while, they are tired and take a break on the bench to watch the three boys play. Virgil has switched to practicing on his skateboard and Patton has got some other kids along with Janus to play the game he invented and all kids seemingly understand despite looking overcomplicated in the way only a kids' game could be.

"I thought you said that Virgil has been skateboarding for months?" Logan observes watching Virgil struggling. 

"Yeah but for some reason the little spider just can't seem to figure it out," Remus winces as Virgil trips over the board.

"I'm surprised he hasn't quit yet," Logan remarks.

"Yeah usually he would but Patton wants to skateboard with him so he's refusing to give up," Remus replies.

"Yeah that sounds more like Virgil," Logan laughs.

"Yep, Virgil told Patton that by Christmas he'll be ready to skateboard. Virgil has been saving up his money to get Patton a skateboard as a surprise," Remus tells him.

"I'll be sure to keep it a surprise," Logan responds.

"I was planning on getting them some books so I believe one on skateboarding would be a nice one to include for both of them," Logan thinks aloud. 

"They'll love that, you've gotten this whole family to enjoy reading more. Roman and I are using the craft book you suggested to make Virgil's and Patton's Christmas gifts," Remus says, throwing his arm around Logan who shifts to get more comfortable in the embrace.

"I am glad to hear that and what are you both making?" Logan inquires.

"Roman is working on a new patched hoodie and I am making Patton a cat hoodie," Remus answers, "Roman's class got cancelled today and he is at home working on it which is the real reason we came to the park. I work on the hoodie while the boys are at the library with you."

"I am excited to see the finished products. Do you…" Logan is interrupted by Remus' phone.

"Hello, ok, I'll get the boys ready," Remus says then hangs up, "What were you going to ask?" 

"Roman answered my question," Logan says gathering up their stuff.

"Ok. PATTON, JANUS, VIRGIL TIME TO GO!" Remus calls and each boy comes running.

"Roman is here?" Virgil asks.

"He'll be here in 5 minutes and we'll be taking the car while you four walk back home," Remus answers.

"Loganberry, did you see us playing the game I invented?" Patton asks.

"Yes, I couldn't follow along and maybe you can explain it to me while we bake cookies later," Logan tells him.

"I can help too," Janus begs.

"Of course," Logan agrees.

"Boys, you ready to go home and make pasta?" Roman asks to walk up to the group.

All three respond positively.

"Alrighty, say bye to Remus and Logan and let's go home," Roman says, herding the boys towards the sidewalk then calls, "Enjoy your classes," over his shoulder.

Remus grabs Logan's hand and they walk to the car together smiling.

@intrulogicalweek

[the-forests-blessing]

Chapter 3

The next… afternoon comes much sooner than Lukas expected! 

     Our author snaps up into a sitting position, horror and disbelief spread across his features as he stares at the clock ticking on the opposite side of the room. It’s past noon! How on earth did he accidentally sleep in so late!? The blond throws himself out of bed and quickly begins to dress at a fast, albeit clumsy pace. Still drowsy from sleep, he doesn’t think much further ahead than getting his casual attire on. There isn’t a second to waste when there’s only so many hours left in the day! Dewey awakens in his spot on the bed during all the loud commotion, watching with wide emerald eyes as Lukas rushes to tug his pants on. 

     “Dewey! I screwed up!” Lukas kneels now, hurriedly tying the laces of his dress shoes. “I shouldn’t have stayed up so damn late reading those books. How could I be so careless?” Lukas huffs with frustration at himself. While he was totally invested in the ecological books he borrowed from the library yesterday, he also found himself restless with the yearning to go out and explore. Tossing and turning in bed, the insistent drive to finally begin his studies in the forest outside of BeaconTown kept him up later than he’d intended. 

     He races to his satchel on the table, gathers his notebooks by shoving them all in, then swings his bag over his shoulder and- oops forgot to get his coat on! Takes off the bag- gets his coat– okay there. Now he wraps the strap over his head and shoulder and- “Come on, Dewey!” Lukas calls from the door. Dewey stops mid-grooming session to spring into action. The ocelot bounces off the bed and sprints to the door like an excited puppy dog ready for his daily walk. 

     Down in the inn foyer, Lukas passes by the girl at the front desk. She perks up from her novel to address the disheveled male with a puzzled look. “Is there a back exit in this establishment by chance?” He asks breathlessly. “One that leads directly out to the grassy field behind the wall?” 

     “Y-you want to go out there? It’s awfully close to the forest.” She tells in a rather concerned tone. Lukas responds with a confirming nod. “I mean, there’s a fire escape in the back just down the first floor hallway. You can use that door, but it leads to the alley between our building and the wall.” 

     “And where’s the nearest exit to that?” Lukas asks. The girl opens her mouth to respond when suddenly Dewey hops up onto the front desk counter, delightfully surprising the woman. 

     “Aw! Kitty!” She reaches out, giving the ocelot a nice little head scratch. “Well I mean if you’re serious, there’s a hole in the wall from a creeper blast that’s been waiting to get patched up for months. The mobs have been spawning back there like crazy, so I advise you to be careful, not like that it’s anything compared to what’s in the forest, but still.” 

     “Okay thanks!” Lukas exclaims, scooping Dewey up with a squeak and quickly begins walking his way down the hall. 

     “W-wait!” She shouts, snapping her book shut. “Are you seriously going out there?” The front desk girl comes darting out from behind the counter to watch the man and his jungle cat rush down the hall.

     “Yep! Have a good day!” 

     And just like that, the two turn down another hall and out of sight. The girl stands there, absolutely baffled by the lack of concern the man portrays for his or his ocelots’ safety. “Welp. Probably won’t be seeing him ever again,” she shrugs casually and returns to her spot behind the counter.

     Outside, Lukas is blessed with the divine warmth of afternoon sunshine. He doesn’t waste his time basking in it, instead searching left and right between the exit door and the alleyway until he spots the blast hole gaping through the wall. The mossy stone wall in front of him looms tall, casting shade throughout the alleyway like a narrow river of shadow. On the left side is where the hole breaches through the protective barrier between town and field, something that could easily be patched up with dirt or cobblestone but, Lukas assumes, BeaconTowner’s probably don’t care at this point. “Come on, Dewey.” Lukas nods his head to follow and begins his approach to the opening. 

     He stops at the mouth of the opening, Dewey padding close behind. Looking down into the debris, he quietly admires the way the grass has already begun to grow between the rubble that remains from the creeper blast. Hopefully no one was harmed here , Lukas worries but decides not to dwell on the manner. He’s on a mission, and he’s already losing precious time! Casting his gaze down to Dewey, he watches his ocelot thrash his tail wildly with excitement. Lukas kneels, gives his ocelot’s bandana a quick tightening up and asks, “you ready?” 

     Dewey ready’s himself for a race, getting into position by hunching low and bending his legs for a mighty leap out into the grassy fields of freedom. Lukas stands, smirking. “A race? Sure!” I already know you’re going to beat me again. The blond braces himself, using one arm to clutch his bag close and the other to count his fingers down. “3… 2… 1… GO!” 

     Immediately Dewey bounces himself off the rubble and lands gracefully into the grass below. But he doesn’t stop there; the ocelot disappears into the tall grass as Lukas attempts to catch up, though he quickly loses sight of him. Lukas huffs out a soft laugh as he runs after his little jungle cat friend, catching sight of where the grass rustles, the sun flashing against the green stalks giving the novelist a clear idea of how far ahead Dewey is. Running through the field feels wonderful. The air is so clean, the smell of wet dirt and grass bathing his tongue and inciting a bright ray of optimism for the day. 

     The run to the tree line is about a minute and a half long. Long enough to make Lukas’ heart race with adrenaline as he finally approaches the end of the grassland. Eventually his pace begins to slow, coming to a jog and then a walk– then a dead stop. Lukas’ smile fades away, his eyes widening with surprise to the discovery of warning signs. They’re… everywhere. Plastered on trees and wooden stakes in the ground. “Danger! Do not enter!” “Authorized personnel only beyond this point” “Enter at your own risk” and… Lukas’ eyes land on a certain sign. Pinned to a tree, the sign reads, in all caps and red ink:��“BEWARE: ADMIN”. 

     “Admin?” He wonders outloud. Lukas is familiar with this word, as it pertains to people with order of power in the redstone field. Typically Admin refers to someone who is in charge of redstone operations, and controls who and what goes where, and is typically the only person qualified to make changes. So this… Lukas narrows his gaze on the sign and without looking, rummages through his satchel and pulls out his dictionary. He quickly flips through it and confirms with himself of his own mental descriptions. He wonders what this warning could possibly mean. 

     A fern behind one of the tall evergreens rustles, causing Lukas to drop his gaze and watch in bated anticipation. As he’d expected, Dewey hops out of the fern and bounds to his side, sitting down in front of Lukas with a prideful chin raise at his successful race. Lukas chuckles, reaching into his bag to grab his ocelot a freeze dried minnow treat. “Good job, Dew. I don’t think anyone could beat you in a race.” He praises and tosses the minnow treat to his friend who swiftly catches it in his mouth without fail. 

     Lukas draws his attention back up to all the warning signs. “I guess we have another mystery on our hands, huh Dewey?” He says, glancing down at the ocelot who simply gives him a strange look. “Hah, sorry, hands and paws.” Lukas returns his dictionary back to his satchel and clasps the latch shut. “Well, these woods can’t be any more dangerous than the crimson forests of Norfair. I think we can handle ourselves, right buddy?” 

     Dewey tilts his head, looks away, tilts it back and looks at Lukas with an uncertain expression. Lukas just shrugs, “Well we didn’t come all this way to be stopped by some silly signs. Besides, remember what they’d say back at the ranger station? ‘The unknown always has a chance at leading you to discovery.’ …Jeez that's cheesy looking back on it now, but I mean, it’s still kinda true, right?” Lukas grins sheepishly, Dewey on the other hand is not amused. The ocelot just rolls his eyes and stands, turning to begin making his way into the forest. He stops at the mouth of the tree line, one paw off the ground as he looks back and waits for his owner to come along. 

     The moment Lukas steps into the forest, he feels a gentle breeze pass him, pushing its way into the forest from the outside world. He takes one look back at BeaconTown, his wandering gaze resting upon the massive tower looming in the sky, casting a great shadow over the town below, making it look so small… inferior to its mighty size. Lukas lingers for only a moment before turning back to the forest and, with one confident step, passes by the warning signs to turn back. His eyes narrow with set determination. The author begins walking in, following his ocelot as Dewey bounds ahead, hopping over fallen branches, twisting tree roots, and even the occasional tree cone. 

    “Watch out for the pinecones, Dewey.” Lukas warns his friend. “They can be found with sap attached to them, and you’ll absolutely hate getting sticky paws out here.” Lukas’ lips draw into a smile, humored by the acknowledging tail flick the ocelot offers him as he continues to venture ahead. He knows Dewey will keep a vigilant eye. For now, Lukas lifts his chin up with a smile, taking in the coniferous woodland surrounding him. 

     Just from the short time he’s already spent here, he can already name a few of the noble trees that keep this forest green all-year round. The pines here are the ones that bear pinecones, a small percentage of which produce the sap that Lukas warns his ocelot of. Although many cones lay out over the floors of this forest, each coniferous tree here, pine, spruce, fir, and tamarack, all produce their own unique cones in all their ovoid and globular shapes and sizes. Lukas stops his walk to lean down and pick a large cone off the forest bed, examining its scales thoroughly. He can see the seeds in the upper surface, igniting a fire of inspiration inside our explorative author. He sticks the cone in his satchel and continues forth, following his ocelot close behind. 

     As the two continue deeper into the woods, Lukas loses all thought revolving around the warning signs from earlier. Instead, he’s investing the most of his mental thought in the intrigue of the differing cones he’s come across and stuck in his bag for later investigation. He can’t help but notice how lacking of pathways this forest is. It’s a bit difficult to traverse on foot, making Lukas wish he’d fitted himself out in his adventure gear and travel boots, especially as the ground beneath his feet gets wetter. As expected, the rain from yesterday's downpour has thoroughly drenched the forest, feeding the trees and plants, as well as the wildlife that roam the roots and leaves of the floor, to the birds that fly from branch to branch above. 

     A tremulous twitter warning sounds above, drawing Lukas and Dewey’s attention to a frightened robin flitting away. Dewey thrashes his tail wildly at the idea of a hunt, to which Lukas quickly dismisses. “ No hunting, Dewey. I’m not going to let you kill another innocent critter just for you to not eat it again.” Dewey hunches low at the accusation, glaring back at his owner, annoyed. “Oh don’t give me that look. Maybe if you stopped playing with your food, then I’d let you hunt freely.” Dewey just shakes his head, lifts his nose up and turns away, leaving Lukas to linger in his spot, amused. “How can so much attitude be in one cat?” He mutters under his breath, but by the flick of Dewey’s black with white polka-dotted ear, he could tell the ocelot heard. 

     The two continue walking for longer than Lukas keeps track of. He can’t remember when he’d last looked back and realized they’d wandered away far enough to no longer see BeaconTown through the cracks between each of the individual evergreens. Even the bright blue skies have disappeared, replaced by endless trees and bushes. The sound of a loud, echoed knocking causes Lukas’ heart to leap with surprise. He looks around wildly, and when it repeats, he lifts his gaze up into the trees in the direction of the pecking. A woodpecker. In search of a meal, it focuses on drilling its sharp beak in poking holes into the trunk of one of the conifers. Lukas’ expression lifts positively, the blond snaking his hand back into his satchel to grab his notebook. 

     Dewey waits, impatiently kneading the ground whilst Lukas takes his sweet time making note of the bird. As time continues to draw on, the two are stopped every few minutes so Lukas can log in another finding. He’ll find an object of interest, whether it be plant or animal, make note of its appearance, saving it for later studies. He’ll be here for three months after all; he’s got plenty of time to explore and scour the forest for all it has to offer! 

     As they continue deeper, Lukas is finding himself climbing up more slopes, making a mental note of how deep in each incline is. The first one comes along about a half-hour into their adventure. He’d struggled a bit, wishing once again that he’d brought his adventure gear instead of his casual attire. If only he hadn’t slept in! His thoughts would have been far more reasonable with him. Instead he’d fallen into a rush to get out the door. Lukas sighs, staring down at the mud and dirt that clings to the soles of his feet. 

     No matter, a simple wash back at the inn will clean them right up. Lukas flicks his gaze over to Dewey, his ocelot currently sitting on a tree stump, grooming his own dirtied paws. Lukas’ eyes wander, following the fallen down tree that once stood as part of that stump. The massive log now lay defeated, resting upon another steep slope. The blond looks around, finding no other way to really get up any higher from this point other than to make use of the fallen tree itself. Determined, Lukas sets forth towards the massive log, splaying his palms out over its dampened bark and pressing inward. The structure is still stiff and sturdy. It will do doubt be able to support his weight. Lukas adjusts his bag to lay across his back and steps up onto the tree. One foot, then the second, he quickly finds his balance with ease. 

     “We’ll be doing a bit more climbing from this point, Dewey.” Lukas says from his elevated stance over the ocelot. Dewey stops grooming and looks at him, adjusting himself with his tail over his front paws and waiting patiently. Lukas turns and, with the experience he has, makes it across the log without slipping. It’s a slow process, but better safe than sorry. He hops off the tree and lands in the grass on top of the slope with a light ‘thump’, then looks back at Dewey. “Alright, your turn, buddy.” 

     Dewey leaps to the log with a light trill. He quickly runs up the dead tree, his long tail high in the air as he crosses and joins the author at the top. 

     “Nicely done.” 

     The two continue onward. Nearly an hour into their hike, Lukas has his nose deep in one of his empty maps. He uses this one as a landmarker, making note of unique spots in the forest to help guide him. One in particular was a very elegant mossy boulder, while the other was the dead tree that helped the two reach further into their destination. More hills and slopes come and go, thankfully nothing as grand and impassable as the previous one. It doesn’t take long for Lukas to lose himself in his thoughts, scribbling the length they’ve walked into his map in progress. 

     “Mrrrowl,” Dewey’s gravelly meow makes Lukas perk up from his work. 

     “Hm? What’s wrong?” Lukas finally looks up from his map sheet, his teal eyes widening with surprise at the dense layer of fog that lies before him. The forest around him has darkened since the last time he was keeping proper attention to his surroundings. He quickly looks down, rolling up his sleeve to check his dark, navy blue watch on his left wrist. Evening will be coming soon, Lukas realizes with a regretful twist in his gut. This is all because he slept in and wasted so much of his day. They’ve hardly breached the surface of what the forest holds! Lukas sighs, downcast at the idea of going back so–

      Rustle rustle…

     Lukas and Dewey both lift their heads up quickly to the sound of rustling in the tree branches overhead. Curiously, there’s nothing there. Lukas quirks a brow, then turns his head down and looks at Dewey. “Let’s keep going a bit further. I presume the fog indicates we’ve just entered a higher elevation.” Dewey looks worried at the sound of this but doesn’t argue with it. Instead of bounding ahead with confidence, he decides to linger back with Lukas, walking with him by his side. 

     The fog here, Lukas can’t help but notice, is nothing like he’s ever seen. It carries an eerie blue hue to it, one that makes Lukas wonder what kind of natural phenomena is the cause. Surely the green needle clusters on the trees don’t affect the light that passes through the branches and into the fog? Lukas can’t help but find unwavering interest, craving to understand. So he ventures further and further, and the more he walks, the more he begins to realize that not only does the fog carry a blue hue, but so do the plants as well. The conifers have darkened, their trunks a dark, strange blue and the bark stretching over them is more twisted and unnatural. The hanging branches above are their own dark, shadowy night skies above. Creators, even the ferns and grass have changed colors. 

     Another rustling sound makes the blond freeze and this time, spin on his feet to look up at the trees only to, once again, see nothing. The sound does not appear again and instead, leads Lukas to a skin pricking tension, realizing how silent the forest has become. There is no breeze or twitter of birds. There is only the crunch of dead pine needles and leaves beneath his feet, and the peculiar rustling that seems to be… following him. 

     Lukas narrows his gaze on the branches, hesitating as he attempts to catch any form of movement. Instead, a drop of rain landing on his nose nearly tears the soul right out of him. He flinches strongly, shaking his head as his heart begins to race wildly, anxiety clutching at his gut like a giant fist. Lukas turns his attention down to Dewey, his ocelot meeting his gaze with just as similar of a fearful expression as he has. “Y-y’know, it’s actually getting pretty late. Maybe we should head back?” Dewey nods quickly in agreement. “Okay, cool, cool. We’re on the same page then. Let’s get back before the rain comes again.” 

     Lukas quickly turns around and, for the first time in his life, stops with a stomach dropping realization. He looks around hurriedly, looking at all the trees and bushes, trying to remember which way they’d come from. Anxiety begins to make his hands shake, and another raindrop atop his head only makes the urgency to get his map out all the more dire. “O-okay, here,” he draws his finger down, wincing at his lack of progress. “Alright, this way,” Lukas nods his head towards the direction he believes in. “This is our way back, let’s go-OOooH!” 

     A horrifying drop. 

    Lukas shouts as the ground beneath his feet breaks, terror snapping his eyes wide open as he stares into the dark pit that gradually swallows him. It all happens so quickly. He plummets deep into a steep, muddy hole, making contact at the bottom with a painful “oof!” Lukas’ heart is racing and it takes him a moment to properly process what had just occurred, as well as the pain in his legs and butt from landing so obnoxiously unprepared. “Ugh..” A pale hand reaches up, rubbing at his forehead. Dazed and confused, he groans as he looks around this… this dirt hole. “W-what in the world?” Lukas grunts as he rises to his feet, seething at the pain that runs through his knees. “Ah.. ouch.” 

     “Mreeowl!”

     !

     Lukas looks up finally and, to his horror and dismay, finds himself several blocks deep in a hole. A manually dug hole. No way does a hole this narrow and deep form without human interference. Dewey’s little head pokes out from opening, the ocelot looking down at his owner with extreme worry. “Dewey! Are you okay?” Lukas shouts. Dewey meows again, then reaches his little speckled arm into the hole, clawing desperately at the air. 

     “You stay right there! I– I’ll look for a way out!” Lukas directs Dewey, the ocelot sitting back with his head low and ears flattened. The blond looks around the hole, searching for any roots or rocks to use as leverage to get himself out. It’s no use. The hole is dug through nothing but solid dirt. Even reaching out and clawing at the earth with his hands only makes the packed dirt crumble a few measly specks. Another droplet of rain draws his attention to look back up. The sky, or what most he could see of it through the fog, has darkened significantly. Like a shadow blanketing the landscape. Okay… Now is officially the time to panic.

     “D-Dewey! I… I don’t think there’s a way out of this on my own!” Lukas shouts from the bottom of the hole. Dewey responds to his words with a worrisome chitter, standing and clawing at the air between himself and Lukas again. Lukas’ heart breaks at the ocelot’s futile rescue attempts. “Dewey, no, you’ll fall! Listen to me closely.” The author urges. “I need you to run back to town as fast as you–” more rain interrupts him, and this time it’s heavier droplets that send a chill of horror down the man's spine. Adrenaline kicks into high gear, anxiety clutching his heart and taking the air out of him. “Run to town and get help! F-from the guards or— or the hunter’s! Anyone!”

     Dewey hisses at the very idea of leaving his friend behind. He shakes his head and scrunches his nose. 

     “Dewey, you have to!” He pleads. The rain begins to strengthen, now pattering the dirt at the base of the hole. Lukas looks down, and with a quick realization process, examines what it was that tricked him into thinking this was the forest floor. A dense blanket of leaves, weaved together perfectly to create an illusion of leaves on the ground. This… this is a pitfall trap. Whoever made this hole made it with the purpose of trapping some unknowing victim. Lukas’ brows knit and he snaps his head up, his mind immediately wandering back to the hunter’s Radar spoke of yesterday. Lukas glances up now, and to his dismay and relief, Dewey has disappeared. “Oh, Dew… Please be careful.” Lukas rests his back against the dirt, disbelief and anxiety forming a nasty ball of nausea in his belly. He… cannot believe this is happening. It was all so sudden. 

     The rain continues to fall… 

     Lukas stands in a puddle of slowly rising water. His teal eyes blurred as tremendous, body shuddering bouts of fear shake him to his core. His blond head thumps against the dirt wall behind him, his eyes rising up the wall, once again searching for a way out. He does another inventory check for the third time within a five minute timespan. He brought nothing but the clothes on his body and the books in his bag. He’d never expected to land himself in a trap of all things. The warning signs didn’t mention anything like this! 

      Authorized personnel only… Lukas recalls.

     It must be those hunters. It’s the only plausible reason for traps in the woods where animals inhabit. But… Lukas looks up and down the hole, deeming it close to a seven block stretch at the very least. What kind of animals are they trapping that need a hole so deep? The most Lukas saw on the way out here was a field mouse scurrying around some tree roots, in search of seeds, as well as the numerous bird species he’s since logged for extensive research in the future… 

     Lukas hangs his head low, feeling so… so stupid. He went through all those years of training, traveling the world, exploring the Nether, all for it to end like this. Lukas closes his eyes, gritting his teeth and shoves his hands against his face. Stupid stupid stupid. His feet shift only slightly, causing the water at his feet to stir lightly. He peers down, genuinely disturbed by how quickly the water at the base of the hole is beginning to rise. His soaked shoes and socks are the least of his worries as of right now though. The rain is pouring, so sudden and out of nowhere! As time draws on… And with no sign of Dewey… Lukas’ need for panic strengthens tenfold. The water has risen a little past his ankles, and it’s only growing more steadily. Tears sprang to his eyes, fear that his life and everything he has worked up to could truly possibly end tonight. 

     In a last attempt at salvation, Lukas calls out, “Hello!?” He waits… watching the opening above. No go, there’s no one around to help him. He begins to shake horribly, fear entangling his heart like thorny vines. “P-please! Anyone!” He tries again, panting as he begins to rapidly lose his breath to anxiety. “Oh no… Oh no no no no…” The soaked blond crouches in a puddle of defeat. The rain pelts his head and back, drenching him of his sorrows. He clutches at his satchel, as it’s all that he has to hold onto as he waits for rescue to arrive or… “P-please–” he sobs into his bag.

     In the midst of the rain plopping into the puddle at his feet, Lukas catches the sound of something else. It sounds… elegant. Like a chiming trill, completely inexplicable. Lukas opens his eyes, his brows knitting with confusion– until he looks up. What he sees absolutely stuns him to his core. He actually has to rub his eyes in disbelief to make sure he’s not just seeing things. A creature of fables and fairytales, one of which Lukas has been exploring all over the world for. It presents itself in a soft, blue glow. Its naturally illuminated, baby blue body is small, but too big for Dewey to consider to be a play-thing. It trills from the opening of the hole, looking down at an absolutely amazed Lukas. An allay!

     The author hurriedly reaches for his notebook, getting his hand past his satchel's flap before he’s stopping himself. What am I doing!? I can’t just write about this now! I’ve got to get out of here! He gives himself a mental slap for his own idiocy, looking back up at the little allay that continues to stare curiously down at him. 

     “H-hi…” Lukas begins with a soft, friendly tone, unable to shake the tremble of excitement and fear out of his voice. “ Please… W-would you be able to help me out? I— I’m so scared to die in this hole, please , if there’s anything you can do to help me.” Lukas clasps his hands together, pleading with the little fairy. Its white eyes reflect the clouds of the Aether, blinking down at the human, captive in his hole. It chimes a sound so elegant, it snags the adventurer's heart instantly. The allay lifts itself from its perch and glides down into the hole with ease. It’s blue aura following it, lighting the dirt up in blue light until it comes face-to-face with a truly awestruck Lukas. “I can’t believe it,” he draws out without thinking, unable to take his eyes off the mystical creature of legend. “You’re absolutely beautiful… Radiant light itself.” His gentle voice is filled with wonder, looking upon the creatures he’s practically waited all his life to finally see.

     To think it would be here in this muddy, seemingly inescapable hole of all places.

     The allay laughs softly at Lukas’ compliment, a sound so kind and charming, like pulling the strings of a regal harp. Its solid white eyes shut happily, expressing what little joy it can with only eyes and no other facial features but that. Lukas watches the fluttery little creature ascend the shadowy hole, its blue light rising, then quickly vanishing, leaving Lukas to once again succumb to the darkness. Silence returns in the most haunting way imaginable. Lukas stares up at the hole, his eyes shining with emotion. Without the allay’s light, the hole has never felt darker. He’s never felt more alone. And he always feels alone. 

     If he is to truly die here, drowning pathetically in a pit of mud, then at least he got to meet an angel before succumbing to his harrowing fate.

     ~

     He raises his head to face the clouds that pour mercilessly upon him, rendering him helpless and nauseated with the idea of dying in a muddy pitfall. There’s beauty in the sound of rain, though he finds no comfort in nature's song this time. The rain is deafening, and the dense fog is beginning to creep down the unstable muddy walls that surround him. It’s ghostly blue hue he realizes is truly haunting, as it is interesting. The dense gray clouds above mute the moon's light, his only source of comfort as he feels his fears further choking him up. Anxiously, and so horribly worried for his and his little companions safety, he must put all his faith in his beloved ocelot who’s just as unfamiliar with this tumultuous terrain as he is. Although with every anxious thought brings his spirit down lower than the dirt he’s stuck in.

     Absolutely ridiculous he rushed out of his hotel room without even truly grabbing supplies. Not even a lantern... He can only shake his head at his own behavior, regretting staying up late now more than ever. He was simply so curious and inquisitive about this new, what he truly believes in beautiful biome. Despite where he is now... You know what they say about curiosity and cats? Lukas can only drop his gaze back down to the muddy, drowning roots in front of him.     Please let nothing happen to Dewey.

     He never thought himself one to feel helpless so quickly, to give in to defeat. As time draws on, the allay does not return. Stricken with desperation, he keeps shouting for help to no avail. Lukas leans his shoulder against the softened dirt wall, growing tired and colder by standing in the middle of the hole. For he cannot cry as much as one would think, he’s getting tired and his throat exhausted from shouting for help. He takes a deep breath, smelling nothing but earth and rain. Feeling soaked, sodden with mud. His hair emitting a stream of rain unto his crossed arms. Holding himself for warmth, he tries to focus on listening for Dewey. Even as hopeless as it seems, he knows his ocelot will do his best to return. 

     It’s then he hears the unsettling sound of a zombie's growl, there’s no denying the muffled groan that follows the sound. Lukas looks up, cringing and bracing himself at the idea of being sniffed out like a piece of prey. He sends a silent prayer to the stars and closes his eyes again, trying to imagine how close the mob is. There’s only one from what he can tell, so he steps away from the wall and stares upward toward the edge.     The earth above him shakes without warning, what sounds like bushes being trampled by something… big. Very big. Lukas swallows, his fear running down his spine and making his body tremble. He gasped as the mob went flying over the hole, dying upon impact somewhere he couldn't see. He breathes out as he gradually becomes unsteady on his feet, anxiety gripping his heart relentlessly.

    He hears the trees rustling, and branches breaking as it encroaches upon him. But before he can see anything, the forest falls unnaturally still, all noise ceasing and only leaving the downpour. Lukas falls silent and shivering, holding himself as he tries to keep some semblance of warmth.     His heart flutters with confusion as the allay appears again. Illuminating his darkening horrors with its icy blue light. “It’s you! You came back!..” Lukas calls, still terrified, but thankful for its company. “Please don’t leave, I-I really..” Lukas’s heart drops as the allay turns tail and goes out of sight again, immediate hot tears pour down both his cheeks as he stands frozen. It’s nearly pitch black. He can’t even speak. He covers his face, and runs his hands down his flushed features. Frustration squeezing his heart he opens his mouth, “Come back! Please, I need help! I’m.. I’m getting really tired! I won’t hurt you..” Lukas tries, pleading with the creature he cannot see.     He sees its blue light illuminate the branches of the trees above as it flies, Lukas’ eyes glittering with its beautiful, flickering light. It’s then a shadow overtakes the allay’s light, his stomach drops as his heart halts within his chest.     A predatory glare is staring back at him. An aura in the air has him immobile, and under judgment. A massive unmoving shadow and its intimidating, yet gorgeous illuminated gaze looks down upon him from the shadows above. Everything around them is so dark, all he can see is its partial outline of a massive figure. Whatever this thing is, it seems to be what the allay brought..     “H..hi..” Lukas grunts as his entire body goes weightless. “Whoa!” Lukas struggles for only a second before he is lifted from the mud. He breathes audibly, staring into the eyes of the shadow that lifts him. He’s lifted higher than the hole, his stomach clenching with a new wave of uncertainty as he’s lowered to the ground yet.. Not quite allowed to touch it. The shadow stays beyond his perception. It's then he’s lifted to the entity's face. Its eyes locked onto Lukas’, glaring into the human's mystified gaze as if it bore straight into his soul. Goosebumps rise and Lukas feels his mouth go dry, staying silent.

     Lukas is then pushed further away without warning, weightlessly tossed across the pitfall to safety. Lukas doesn’t hit the forest floor hard, landing in soft moss and dead leaves, but he does scramble to sit back up and onto his knees so he could see who pulled him from the pitfall.

     But there’s nothing. Nothing but the horrible trap he thought would doom him to an early grave.     The Allay and its magical trills are missing. The glaring shadow has vanished as well, its power having no residual, not on him and not on their surroundings. It’s then, and only then that he hears distant shouting. 

     ~ 

     Lukas is immobilized by the encounter he just faced. Even as the search party arrives, he’s unable to fully harness the ability to move, let alone speak. A soft, yet soaked presence suddenly presses onto him. Dewey presses his muzzle strongly against Lukas’ cheek, purring loudly with relief. A group of humans emerge from the shadows, carrying lanterns and flashy weapons as they enter the small clearing where the pitfall was set. 

     “Hey!” A man snarls the moment his piercing green eyes set upon Lukas’ muddy form. “What the hell do you think you’re doing out here? Did you not read the signs?” He leans down, getting in Lukas’ face, yet the blond offers no response. The man reels back, his eyes widened, searching the author and his surroundings before his glare lands on the triggered pitfall trap. “How did you get out of there?” He demands, turning aggressively fast back on the distraught blond. “Tell me!” 

     “Chill out, Aiden.” A gruff voice mutters from the small crowd of armed people. A burly man, built strong and tall, steps forward. Lukas flicks his eyes up to the man, though still incapable of speech as his mind and body attempt to process what just happened. “Step aside,” the man huffs, making the other shorter male, Aiden , back off slightly, but still lingering too close for Lukas’ comfort. The stranger offers out a large hand, Lukas taking a moment to consider it before lifting a shaky, cold palm to grasp onto his. The man helps him to stand, Lukas’ legs immediately threatening to give out beneath his exhausted weight. “Whoa there,” the stranger catches him, helping to keep him standing on his toes by keeping a firm set of hands on his sides. 

     “Jack.” Aiden speaks the name with rising frustration. “What are you waiting for? Question him!” 

     “I said cool it, Aiden.” Jack snaps back at the lesser male behind him. Aiden’s eyes widen, then narrow as he draws back to silence. Lukas looks at this Aiden person for only a second and can already tell this is one of the people he’s destined to avoid for the next three months. He doesn’t lend him his eyes for long, instead his tired teal gaze looks up to this Jack person, his eyes droopy, darkened from exhaustion. Jack ‘tuts’ his tongue, shaking his head and gives Lukas a firm pat on the back. “Let’s get yuh out of this rain, how ‘bout it?” Jack suggests, and Lukas could not agree faster. He nods quickly, but continues to keep his silence. 

     The walk back is extremely awkward to say the least. Lukas is in the presence of numerous strangers and, by the way Jack refuses to let go of his right shoulder, he feels like somewhat of a prisoner. Lukas glances back, washed with endless gratitude and relief to see Dewey pawing right behind him. His poor sweet ocelot is soaked from ears to toes. Lukas feels so horrible for putting him in this situation. How could he let this happen? With all of his survival training back with the rangers? Lukas cringes with embarrassment, cursing himself silently once again…

     Although.. His mind continues to wander back to the allay and that… thing that saved him. Whatever it was, it lifted him from that deep, muddy pitfall without even doing so much as laying a single finger on him. Lukas felt nothing but this weird feeling of pressure encompassing all around his body as he’d floated up to the top of the hole, only to be then tossed off into a mossy bed beneath a passive pine. Lukas stares straight ahead, his vision shaking and blurring as he envisions that glowing set of eyes glaring back at him. Was it a mob? A person? He wonders. Lukas’ gaze descends to the forest floor, watching his own feet trudge clumsily along as the group continues to press towards the end of the coniferous biome. 

     “So, I’ve been meanin’ to ask you,'' Jack says, breaking the silence for Lukas and the rest of the group. “What’s your name?” 

     Lukas feels his skin prickle with goosebumps, aware of the glare piercing his muddy backside. He doesn’t want to respond. He’s too tired, and most definitely uncertain of sharing his personal information with these people, but he knows when he has no choice but to comply.

     “Lukas,” he mutters under his breath. 

     “Lukas.” Jack repeats, emitting a thoughtful hum before continuing, “what brought you all the way out into these woods tonight, Lukas?” 

     Lukas closes his eyes, breathing in and holding his breath before sighing out heavily. “I’m an author. I’m doing ecological studies for a book I’m writing. That’s what brought me out here.” Jack chuckles softly in response, the sound causing Lukas to finally look up at the man fully. The brunette’s features are adorned by a well groomed beard. His left eye is foggy, resembling a crystal clear ice lake, while his right eye is dark brown like the dark trunks of the conifers that surround them. 

     “Is that all?” Jack asks with no concern in his deep, gravelly tone. “Well, I gotta ask you, kid.. How the heck did you make it out of that pitfall?” The burly man glances down at Lukas again, and this time, Lukas feels a change in the aura of the group. The moment Jack asks his question, Lukas can hear the adjustment of weapons from the armed men and women in the small group. Something seems… off. He can’t quite put the pieces of the puzzle all together at once, so he diverts away from his story, making one up. 

     “I climbed up,” he says in a shallow whisper. 

     Jack raises a scarred brow, narrowing his eyes up at the blond. “ Climbed up? With all that mud and–”

     “Yeah, climbed up,” Lukas interrupts with a rising prickle of annoyance. “I used to be part of a ranger squad who specialized in ecological conservation a few years back. We’d get ourselves into trouble like this all the time. Just need to know what you’re doing and how to do it, and uh,” Lukas shrugs, “well, when your life is kinda at stake, you tend to put everything you got into it.” What Lukas says seems to have worked. Jack returns to silence, eyeing the blond with skepticism before confirming with a nod.

     “You’re pretty tough for a scrawny guy. I respect it.” 

     “Gee thanks…” 

     The rest of the walk back to BeaconTown is completely silent. Once they reach the town’s gates and dip in past the guards, Jack dismisses his squad with a curt nod. One of the men leaves without a problem, a girl following close behind. This other man, the short haired brunette from earlier, lingers too long for Lukas’ comfort. Aiden stands behind Jack, his face set with an unmoving angry expression that the author truly cannot understand. He’s never seen this man in his life, yet he looks at Lukas in a way that makes his blood run cold. Lukas glares back at him only for a second before turning away, returning his attention to Jack, the apparent leader of the group.

     “I said you’re dismissed Aiden.” Jack repeats, glancing over his shoulder. “Go.” Aiden merely scoffs, shaking his head and mumbling something intelligible. Lukas glares at him as he goes, walking off down Beacon’s mainstreet, eventually disappearing somewhere in the darkness. 

     “With all due respect, what’s his problem?” Lukas asks, unsure if he’s stepping out of line with the question. 

     Jack merely sighs, shaking his head. “It’s complicated.” 

     Lukas sulks where he stands, completely drained of all the energy he felt during the afternoon run under the sun to the tree line. Jack looks up at him sympathetically, offering him a pat on his muddy forearm. 

     “Glad this ocelot of yours found us. I was in the middle of my evening cup of tea when this little guy came sprinting into town. Saw us at the café and, heh, you would’a gotten a real kick out of it. His tail was as fluffed and pointy as the trees you lost yourself in.” 

     Lukas isn’t sure he can find the same humor in that as Jack can. Lukas looks down at Dewey with a very worried expression. He feels guilty for what he’d gotten his ocelot into. The fear he must have felt. Lukas hangs his head low with sorrow, truly apologetic for his actions, or lack thereof. “I’m so sorry for worrying you, Dewey. I promise it won’t ever happen again.” Lukas leans down, petting his precious friend atop his soaked head. 

     “I sure hope you don’t.” Jack says suddenly, grabbing Lukas’ attention once again. Jack’s voice has strengthened into something stern and serious. His expression too has darkened with an emotion Lukas can’t quite place. “You heed those warning signs next time. Do not enter those woods again. It’ll cost you nothin’ but trouble, y’hear me?” 

     Lukas opens his mouth to argue, but finds something restraining his heart, feeling as though he were restrained by chains pulling him back from what he wants to say. Instead, Lukas casts his gaze down and slowly nods, earning himself an approving hum from Jack. 

     “Good. That’s what I like to hear. You take care of yourself, Lukas. If you return to those woods, I won’t promise you’ll be making it back out.” Jack warns stiffly. After that, the man spares no more time with him, leaving Lukas to stand alone in the pouring right. Caked in mud and soaked from head to toe. 

     When he gets back to his room at the BeacInn, Lukas’ first instinct is to shower. He spends a long, long time under the hot stream of water, letting the warmth wash over and relieve his aching, tired muscles of all the stress and cold he’d undergone down in that mucky hole. Even with the harrowing embarrassment he was subjected to through that long trek back to BeaconTown, he can hardly pay any mind to it. His mind focuses all of its remaining energy back to the allay, but most of all, back to that massive shadowy entity that pulled him from the hole with what Lukas could only describe as magic itself. 

     When he leaves the bathroom, the rest of his hotel room is dark. Before he’d attended to his own shower, he had aided Dewey with a quick towel drying session, taking off his bandana to get that dirt splattered accessory cleaned too. Lukas shuts off the light, exiting the bathroom in his pajamas now. The only light he is granted is the dim natural light filtering in through the windows from the outside world. The rain has since softened, now nothing more than a late evening sprinkle. Lukas hesitates getting into bed, even as his body aches from his fall earlier. Instead, he approaches one of the windows again and looks out, gazing upon the tree line.

     That creature. The one the allay brought to him. It saved him and… Lukas didn’t even have a chance to thank it. 

     Lukas’ eyes narrow on the trees and their shadows, already making up his mind. He can’t just avoid the forest because some strangers warned him not to. Especially not now. There’s something in there Lukas needs to understand, and he will do anything in his power to ensure he gets there.