#plague furnace

[lavalamprat]

Just about done, just one stinky priest boi left and it'll be great!

[lovebugism]

eddie x shy!reader who has never been kissed before? 🥺

hope u like it :D — you ask eddie why he didn't kiss you last night (shy!fem!r, hurt/comfort, established relationship, 1k)

The night after Steve’s big house party, you wake up on the floor of Eddie’s room. He’d wanted you to take the bed, of course, but you refused to let him sleep alone. The two of you ended up sleeping right next to the mattress, as lovesick as you are stubborn.

His body is warm next to yours — a furnace that warms the quilt under your body and the comforter thrown over you. He’s lying on his stomach with his face shoved into the pillow. Hair wild and mouth open and so, so far away. You feel the distance like a heavy weight on your chest.

Eddie’s breath hitches in his throat when he rouses. His eyes flutter open, and you squeeze yours shut tight. You pretend to be asleep while he stretches his tired limbs. “I know you’re awake, you loon,” he teases through a yawn.

You smile despite yourself, peeking one eye open to find him already looking at you. His curly bangs are frizzed over his forehead. His chocolate button gaze is softly swollen with slumber. He’s sleep-drenched and utterly beautiful.

“No, I’m not,” you insist.

“Oh, yeah?” he huffs and turns onto his side, shifting closer to you. He sighs in contentment when his warm feet entwine with your colder ones. “Sorry, then. Don’t let me disturb your beauty rest, doll.”

He struggles to hold his eyes open, and your tired smile widens. Your hands tremble with the longing to reach for him — to smooth back the curls sticking to his jaw and to cradle his cheek in your palm — but you don’t let yourself. You cage them under your head and crumble beneath the weight of your yearning.

“Do you feel okay?” you ask.

“Yeah,” he answers, slurring slightly as he wakes. “I didn’t drink much ‘cause I knew I had to drive us home.”

He’d partied for an hour or more, soaking in the sunlight of everyone’s drunken attention. You were content just watching him. One painfully awkward exchange on the dancefloor later — involving an almost kiss that ended up as a friendly peck on your cheek — Eddie started to sober up. He scarfed down water and bread and tried to keep a tipsy Robin Buckley from getting into trouble.

“Do you feel okay?” Eddie wonders upon your silence.

“Mhmm.”

“Then what’s this look for, huh?” His hand rises from beneath the blanket and migrates to your face. He runs a gentle finger over the distant frown between your furrowed brows you didn’t realize was there.

“‘Cause you made me sleep on the floor all night,” you tease in a hushed tone.

He scoffs. “I wanted you to take the bed.”

“And Iwanted you to sleep in the bed with me.”

Eddie’s quiet laugh fills the dim bedroom. His crooked smile is quieter. “I just didn’t wanna make you uncomfortable, babe,” he confesses.

“Well, it wouldn’t’ve,” you murmur, gaze averted and half-shut. You busy your fidgeting hand with a rogue thread on the pillow beneath you. You wrap it around your pointer finger until the tip of it blooms a deeper shade.

“Good to know,” he smiles.

“Is that why…” The words get caught in your throat, and you trail off. You don’t bother to finish your sentence. You were barely brave enough to start it, anyway.

“Is that why what?”

You shake your head against the pillow. “Nothing.”

“No, c’mon,” Eddie croons, shifting again until his head’s on the very edge of his pillow, closer now to yours. He flashes you a soft, well-meaning smile. “Finish what you were gonna say…” he lilts quietly.

You swallow hard. “Is that why you didn’t wanna kiss me last night?”

Eddie’s breath catches for a moment. He exhales a forced laugh and musters a wavering smile. “You caught that, huh?”

“Kinda.”

“Sorry…” He doesn’t know what else to say — how to say that he’s head over heels in love with you and that he’s just a total dumbass. It’s somehow easier to apologize for being both.

“It’s no big deal,” you shrug, even though the thought has plagued your mind for nearly twelve hours now. “I just— I wasn’t sure if you, like, never wanted to kiss me ever, you know?”

“I wanna kiss you all the time,” he blurts with a scoffed laugh.

Your brows pinch. Your sheepish eyes flit between both his cinnamon ones. “Then why don’t you?”

“‘Cause I want you to feel comfortable around me,” he shrugs. “And I don’t wanna make you— you know— feel like I only want you around to be all over you all the time.”

You’re made of something softer than that, Eddie figures. You were delicate, like flower petals and early spring. He wants to treat you just as gently. He loves you so hard he’s scared he’ll break you.

“Well, sometimes I want you to be all over me,” you admit in a faint murmur, eyes sparkling and lips quirking.

Eddie grins wide. You have no idea that you’ve just unleashed a pandora’s box of his affection. Now that he’s got your permission to touch you, he’s not sure if he’ll ever stop.

“Noted,” he nods, shifting somehow closer until you’re sharing the same pillow. “What about now then, huh? Want me to be all over you— morning breath and all?”

You peer at him with doe eyes, firm and unblinking. “Want you all the time, Eds.”

“Good.”

He kisses you then, a gentle peck you didn’t know someone as brash as him was capable of. His plush lips press gently against yours, in a fleeting moment you grieve the second he pulls away. 

When he leans softly back to make sure you’re okay — to be certain that you still want more of him — you beat him to the punch. You chase him as he goes, caging his mouth in a deeper kiss that tastes only faintly of sleep. Your exhaled sighs fan together. Your lips click gently when you pull away.

“Woah,” you hear Eddie mumble.

It takes you a moment or more to open your eyes. You don’t realize how utterly dizzy you are until then. “Was that bad?” you murmur, face scrunched with misplaced panic.

Eddie shakes his wild head until the words catch up to him. “No. No, I just… I can’t believe we haven’t been doing this the whole time,” he confesses with a boyish laugh.

Your giggling entwines with his — innocent and pure and golden. He’s kissing the breath from your lungs a second later, with all the intensity of someone making up for lost time.

[rastronomicals]

4:50 PM EST November 25, 2022:

Altar of Plagues - "Earth: As A Furnace" From the album White Tomb (April 14, 2009)

Last song scrobbled from iTunes at Last.fm

File under: Fiercely Irish Post-Black Metal

[lolitakirstein]

Sleepy men

How the men of Aot sleep/cuddle and what they wear

Ft: Eren Levi Jean Reiner

Cw: nothing really, fluff? Hint of smuttiness. 

EREN: He’s a restless sleeper. Constantly tossing and turning. Mumbling. Slinging his arms over and around you when he rolls over to curl up next to you, mushing his face into the crook of your neck and kissing it. He generally just wears his boxers, nothing fancy. “I sleep hot,” he admits. And good god yes the guy is a FURNACE, you sometimes have to push away from him during the night because he gets so warm. “Get back here” he’ll whines, reaching blindly for your body across the bed. “You’re burning me up!” you say, putting space between you and his hot body. He’ll groan and then throw the covers off of you, exposing you to the cold room. He smirks as you yelp at the cool air and immediately curl back up into him.  The heat DOES pay off in the winter because you sneak your cold feet onto his back. “Goddamn, get those ice cubes off of me!” he mumbles sleepily into the pillow. “But your sooooo warm,” you giggle. 

Levi: He sleeps like a Victorian child struck down with the plague. On his back, hands across his chest like he’s in a casket. He doesn’t move once during the night. “I don’t want to mess up the bed that much,” he says. He wears luxury silk pajamas with his initials on them. It was difficult when you first started sleeping together, you didn’t know if he was a cuddler or not so you just laid on your side next to him for the first few stays over. However, you got brave enough and ask “Do you like to cuddle?” He takes a beat before answering, “Its been awhile since i’ve done such activities but i’m not opposed to it.” You take that as a go-ahead and wrap up against his side, his arm curls around your shoulder, gently stroking your bare arm. “Is this ok?” you ask. He sighs, “Actually this is perfect.” He loves having the weight of you on top of him, sometimes your legs thrown over his. Even when you turn away in your sleep, he will reach a hand to keep on you, just a reminder that you are there with him. 

JEAN: This man is a fucking BED HOG! No matter how big the bed is, they cant contain his tall frame and long legs. He sleeps in a band tshirt and basketball shorts. He will let you wear one of his tshirts to bed as well. He’s a blanket snob too, always stealing them from around you. “Jean I’m cold!,” you pout, trying to tug the covers from around him. He’ll laugh at your pathetic whining and pull you to where you are both on your sides facing each other. His long legs tangling with yours. “Better,” he’ll ask, kissing your nose. “Much” you mumble into his chest, inhaling his scent. When you have a nightmare and are fretting around in your sleep, he will wrap his lean arms around you, kissing your sweat-damp head trying to soothe you. “Hey i’m here, its ok.” he’ll murmur. He easily relaxes you back to sleep. 

REINER: He sleeps in flannel pants and shirtless AND he is a CUDDLER!!!! From the moment your ass hits the mattress he is dragging you close to his body. He loves spooning, the feel of your naked back against his bare chest and the smell of your clean hair is like a sedative to him. “God you smell so good,” he says into your neck. He’s always struggled falling asleep, but once you started spending the nights, he was finally able to get the best sleep he’s ever got. He loves it when you spoon him, draping your tiny body over his muscular back, sometimes tracing your fingers up and down his back and kissing the nape of his neck as you both drift off. When you sleep on your back he lays on his side to face you and wraps his arm over your torso, legs intertwined. He loves watching you sleep, and how peaceful you look. It makes him feel so incredibly lucky. You always wake up to him stealing kisses on your neck or chest or even between your legs. He is ALSO ravenous in the morning. 

[ggwritesstuff]

hey!! Could you do a fic with finnick odair where r was in the blood rain during the quarter quell and is really shook up from it and finnick helps her clean up and calm down? Thanks!!!

Here Now, Here Always.

pairing: finnick odair x reader

warnings: the quarter quell blood rain, brief discussions of trauma, mostly just some finn comfort, not totally proofread

a/n: anon!! thank u so much this took me out of my writing drought :,) i made a few tweaks to the original idea but i hope u still enjoy <3

a/n pt 2: please forgive my formatting if it’s awful i haven’t had to format a post on here in a LOOONG time

It’s been years since the Quarter Quell where the blood rain incident occurred. Caught in the middle of the forest as a viscous, crimson red rained down on you; flooding the divots and lapses in the ground around you and pooling up to your calves in some areas. If it weren’t for Finnick, you would have been another victor turned fallen tribute in the sky that night. The onslaught of blood could’ve flooded and drowned you where you stood with how paralyzed your fear had rendered you. But Finnick, ever the heroic type, came to your rescue. Dodging puddles with every careful step until he reached you, hauling you over his shoulder and carrying you to the shore where he cleaned you up and calmed you down.

The rest was history. You had left that arena with Finnick who has hardly left your side since. However, you also left with the horrific image of your lover drenched in that blood rain. It still haunts you to this day. Especially when it’s raining, like it is tonight.

You’d been tossing and turning for the last hour, the drizzle against yours and Finnick’s bedroom window keeping you awake, plaguing your tired mind with the memories of that day. You felt silly being kept awake by it, unable to relax. You knew that logically, of course it was a normal rainfall. However, trauma doesn’t care much for logic. So you fumbled around in bed for what felt like hours until you felt Finnick’s side of the bed move a bit as he turned to face you.

“You okay, hon?” He asked, his voice soft yet still gruff with sleep. His large, calloused hand reached for your face, landing gently on your cheek as he stroked it with his thumb. You nodded silently to his question, and though his eyes were still bleary he could feel the motion you made.

“Rain keepin’ you up?” You nodded again. Finnick then moved to pull you closer, bringing your back flush to his chest, “S’okay, m’right here sweetheart.” He mumbled sleepily, snaking a strong arm under yours and around your waist. He was so warm against you, your own personal furnace as you’ve called him before. A personal armory of weapons couldn’t make you feel safer than you do with Finnick.

The rain continued to beat against the bedroom window, only now your eyelids were finally growing tired as you were wrapped in Finnick’s protective embrace. He was there during the blood rain. He was there for every rainfall since, comforting and assuring you that you were safe. He’s here now, and he always will be.

“Love you, Finny.” You whispered, intertwining your fingers with his own and bringing his hand to your lips, pressing a gentle kiss to the warm, ever tanned skin.

“Love you more, dear.” He whispered back, the feeling of his lips against the soft skin of your neck the last thing you feel before finally falling asleep.

[gremlinmodetweeker]

You said before that könig is a big baby when he's sick, how does he react to us getting sick? Does he try to be helpful or does he avoid us like the plague lol

Okay so König has no qualms with sickness. This man has been coated in every bodily fluid at some point in his life (and yes I do mean every, he's lived a pretty interesting life) so he is more than fine to handle you.

However, he's a nightmare because he won't let you just relax and be sick. No, König is the king of old wives tale cures. When the day starts, he's forcing you out of bed to brush your hair and teeth because dammit neglecting self hygiene is not an option when this man is living in your house. If you exercise or do stretches in the morning, you just bet that he's making you stretch when you get up. If you exercise, he won't force you to the gym but he will take you on a short walk to 'get some fresh air'. Little does he know that the streets of the city do not count as fresh air in any way whatsoever. His Austrian ass is opening every window in the house to get airflow for you. He's a nightmare.

He's also cooking for you. Thank the heavens he has some common sense to not give you what he eats when he's sick. He'll cook something light and easy for you that won't upset your already weak stomach. He's a devil about making you eat though. He'll force it down, one way or another. At least he'll try until you shove him away. Speaking of, he will try to feed you because he thinks it's romantic and sweet, despite the fact that you look like actual death.

He's determined to keep you clean and fresh. This means he's changing your bed while you're in the bed. It's a bit obnoxious but he just cares about keeping you clean. This also means he runs baths for you or helps you stand for a shower. If you're really unable to leave bed, he'll give you a sponge bath because you're not going to be sitting in sickness.

He will totally cuddle you though. He has no fear of getting sick, after all. He's got a ridiculous immune system. Whether this is from him being naturally strong, or if it's because of his time in the military or from his habit of eating expired food, you'll never know. I'd say you shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth and just accept his cuddles.

There's only one (1) downside to König cuddle sessions. He's hot. No, not like that (yes like that), but like he's a human furnace. It's awful. He's holding you right up to his chest when you get a hot flash but he's fallen asleep so you're trapped in place, sweltering against him.

That said, it's nice to have him around. He'll tell you about his day when he gets home and he'll watch your comfort movies with you (and he'll talk through them because he's an old dad at heart) and he'll keep you well cared for. He's a good partner after all.

[whileyoureinschoolidothisallday]

OKAY it has been a day of being sad and panicky. Time to move.

Yesterday, I made a post detailing the cdc announcement that there will no longer be an isolation requirement for covid. If you are one of the thousands of people rightfully raging in my notes, here's some steps to focus on.

We're not gonna give up. I've seen quite a few comments with things like 'what's the point', 'why should I even try anymore' etc etc and what we're not gonna do is give them what they want! It helps the eugenics cause to be apathetic and listless. We've made it this far, we will continue to make it. I know it's hard, but I am at least right here with you. Give yourself whatever time you need to grieve, and then I need you to get up.

If you have stopped masking for any reason, or you haven't upgraded to a respirator style mask, now is the time to change or start. From now on, we will be living in a country where you could assume there are multiple covid positive people in the room with you at all times. Surgical masks will not handle that load, and cloth masks will be even less effective at that point. Obviously, this is an unprecedented situation we're putting these masks in, and I'm not gonna sit here and pretend to be an expert that can tell you with certainty that even respirators will hold up with this amount of viral load for a long period of time, but it's the best and strongest tool we have. I'm considering using my p100 more, so that's always something to consider as well (and they make you look like a cool raver when you wear them!!!). You can buy all sorts of masks here, there's more links in the comments of my original post, and most states have their own mask blocs. To find them, go to Instagram and type "[your state] mask bloc". Here is a google doc of verified advocacy groups and mask blocs all across the country here is a diy fit test kit you can buy for $30 (unfortunately they are sold out right now. shocker.) PLEASE remember to take a layered response in these times. Masks are not the only tool in our arsenal. PLEASE for the love of God keep up with your vaccinations. Make a corsi-rosenthal box or buy a high quality air purifier if you can afford it--at the very least our homes can be safe havens (you can even put a hepa filter on your furnace!!!! And in your car too!!!!!). Use CPC Mouthwash, nasal irrigation, and nasal sprays like this one. Make it a routine: you come home, you shower, you brush your teeth, you rinse your nose, you change your clothes. And, like I said in another one of my posts, DO NOT TAKE OFF THE MASK.

3. If you would like an outlet for your rage and you're into calling your reps, feel free to calmly but firmly let the cdc have it at these numbers!!!!!

[alt text: a tweet by user silly_paulie that reads:

"Disdain for the CDC unites us all. Call today and demand isolation policies be returned to 10 days, and reducing it further to 1 day would be criminally dangerous. Call both:

404-639-7000 (press 8)

800-232-4636"

end text.]

4. If you need more outlets for your rage, I STRONGLY encourage you to get involved with your local union. Moreso than calling the CDC, tbh. I've seen multiple comments telling people just to lie about your symptoms to get more sick time off, but since there's no legal precedent to allow employees sick time for covid, all that's gonna do is get people fired. I truly believe in my lefty heart that the ONLY way we're getting anything close to mitigation is through labor rights. Even the standard for the fucking flu is 3 days, and that's nowhere near as contagious or disabling as covid. I say this as a high risk person with a neuromuscular disability: covid is an intersectional issue, but where we have the most leverage to get what we need is through labor rights.

It is NOT safe for workers to be working while ill with a Level 3 Biohazard (same as TB and the FUCKING PLAGUE. Seriously we have more regulations around fucking lice)

It is NOT safe to willfully EXPOSE your employees to a Level 3 Biohazard

It is NECESSARY for all employees to be allowed up to 10 days to recover fully from Covid-19, in order to avoid possible further injury from or hospitalization

You will NOT die or be disabled for the sake of the wealthy!!!!!

(and while you're at it, ask for better air filtration too!!!! At least 5 air changes an hour, MERV-13 air filters!! Then we won't have to constantly worry about virus bs and policy changes in the first place!!!!)

5. Closing statements. Nothing has changed with covid, this is just policy. Covid still isn't magic, she still has to get in you before she can do damage--mask up, arm your home with clean air, and don't let her. It's always worse toward the end. This is not the time to give up, it's time to dig in your heels and get to work. There are so many good things happening with covid. They are finding encouraging treatments for long covid. Finally, after years of nothing, a new prophylactic for the high risk was submitted for emergency use to the FDA, and it looks like this time it's built to last against new mutations. Covid is here to stay for the rest of our lives, but the real science hasn't given up on taking the worst of its teeth out. We WILL get to the point where the extreme fear of catching covid is nothing but a bad memory for EVERYONE. All I need you to do is commit to the belief that you're gonna survive long enough to be in that moment with the rest of us.

Now stay safe, and give em hell!!!!!

[mrsbuckybarnes1917]

Pairing: Bucky x f!reader

Word count : 2.4k

Warnings: smut

It was rare for you to fall asleep like this, in a tangled mess of limbs. Bucky was a furnace, emanating heat from every inch of his body which often left you feeling too uncomfortable to sleep. It had taken a long time for Bucky to let his guard down when he came to sleep. The dreams that plagued his unconscious form left him in a heightened state of anxiety and he worried how it might affect you. He hadn't quite found the words to express how much he cared about you, afraid of the frailty of life and the fleeting nature of love.

He enjoyed intimacy but he very much appreciated his space in bed, occasionally slipping away to sleep on the floor. So you felt very much surprised to find him spooning your back, his arm draped across your torso and one of his legs hooked between your thighs.

It was 3am and you weren't sure what had woken you, but you supposed it was the almost suffocating grip your boyfriend had around your chest. For several moments, you lay still, contemplating the best way to extricate yourself from his grasp without waking him. An answer came in the form of your name, mumbled in your ear almost incoherently by Bucky.

Turning to face him, you whispered back to him. "Buck?"

No answer. Except for a few deep breaths which puffed warm air across your face, there was silence.

Had you imagined it?

You turned away, wriggling like a mouse trying to free itself from a python's hold. Bucky groaned and you froze, breath held anxiously until you were confident that he was still in a state of slumber. You were stuck. It was hardly something to complain about, being cradled in the arms of a man who was enchanted by your very being.

The clock in your room ticked away faithfully, intermingled with the sounds of the rise and fall of Bucky’s chest. You closed your eyes, starting to drift off to the melody of your bed chamber.

Another loud groan from Bucky made your eyes fly open. Was he sick? In pain? You twisted around to peer at his face in the dark. In a futile attempt, you reached out to find your glasses, but they were miles from your reach.

"Buck?" you called softly, squinting at his face through the darkness. The lines of his face were mildly lit by the moonlight which crept through a crack in the blinds and as your eyes adjusted to the night you found a softness in his features which only came with sleep.

As you stared, his lips parted gently and uttered your name in a breathy moan. He was dreaming. Of you. For a second he stirred, only to tighten his grasp and pull closer towards you. It was only then that you noticed that he was more alert than you'd originally suspected.

It wasn't just his leg you could feel pushed against your thigh. Your sleeping super soldier had an undeniable hard on. You smirked, that must be some dream he was having!

You waited, wondering whether to wake him or not. But as time ticked on, the sizable tent in his boxers was not diminishing, in fact, his erection was swelling and pushing against your ass. Even in his sleep, Bucky muttered quietly, mostly things you couldn't make out, but one phrase caught your attention. "I want you." 

The lust in his words, still thick with sleep, filled you with a sudden and carnal urge. It lit a fire in the depths of your loins and made you hum in appreciation. Losing yourself in the moment you pushed back against his cock making Bucky's chest flutter and he exhaled a shuddering breath.

Your desire to hear your boyfriend make more of those salacious sounds was overwhelming, but a voice deep down inside you was telling you to tread carefully. Bucky wasn't awake, and even though his body was responding to his thoughts, you felt you had no right to administer any pleasure without his knowing consent.

"Buck," you turned your head towards your slumbering husband. "Hey handsome, rise and shine." You chuckled softly at your own words, Bucky was already halfway there.

He moaned protestingly, he had never been good at the shining part. Your hundred year old grumpus was definitely a night owl, so it was almost a blessing that the sun hadn't risen.

"Buck, Bucky," you breathed his name onto his lips, hoping to wake him gently. "Wake up, I want you to fuck me."

Bucky’s eyelids fluttered slightly in response to your words. You smirked at what was needed to get his attention. "Babe please, I want you inside me."

"What did you say, doll?" he slurred sleepily.

"Hi," you whispered, smiling as he opened his eyes and met your gaze.

"Hi," he answered, marveling at your beauty. Even in the middle of the night you looked like an angel to him, an angel that had fallen into his arms. "You look stunning."

"Thank you."

"I was dreaming about you."

You laughed, "oh, I don't doubt that."

Bucky furrowed his eyebrows in confusion at your reaction of mirth. "What's so funny?"

"You were dreaming of me, that was abundantly clear."

"Oh? What makes you so sure?"

"I'm pretty sure this," you took the hand that was cradling your chest and guided it to his erection, "gives the game away."

Bucky's expression quickly turned to horror and he pulled away from the embrace. "Oh God, I'm sorry. I didn't-"

"Woah, Buck, it's fine."

"It's not fine."

"Isn't that for me to decide?"

Your boyfriend looked at you, you certainly had a way of winning an argument. "I'll just go cool off."

"Well, I'd rather you didn't." You put a hand on his arm as he attempted to untangle himself from you. 

Bucky stopped in his tracks, one leg was already hanging off the bed as he tried to escape to the bathroom. He turned back to face you. "What?"

"Get back in bed, Bucky."

He looked at you with uncertainty.

"Please, babe. Take off your pants."

Bucky felt his cock twitch at your words.

"Help me?"

"Help you? Don't make me get out of this bed Buck. Just take off your boxers and get back in. We're losing heat."

"We?"

"Yeah, get back in here and I'll show you how hot I actually am."

Bucky chuckled, "I'm intimately familiar with how hot you are, doll."

"I still think you need a little refresher," you waved him under the duvet in the darkness. "Touch me."

Bucky wrapped his arm around your waist in response to your request for him to touch you.

"Kiss me."

His lips were on your neck, kissing, sucking, tasting that sweet unique blend that made you so appealing and aroused him so.

Every nip he made at your neck, every stroke his fingers made over your abdomen stoked the fire in loins. He slipped under your shirt, raking his fingers across your bare flesh up towards your unbound breasts.

You pushed your back against his chest, against his now throbbing member. "Here, Bucky," you reveled in the way that he massaged your breast.

Lost in the moment you closed your eyes, taking in everything you could feel. Your boyfriend was now propped up on his elbow, his chin resting on your shoulder. Every now and then his nose would graze your jawline and the stubble on his chin tickled your skin. His breath was hot and heavy and each one felt like a billow, stoking the desire inside you.

"Yes, Bucky," you murmured, pressing your hand on his. "Here."

Since Bucky was behind you, you both faced the same direction and couldn't meet his eyes, you knew he was craving something more from the way his breath had become more haggard.

"I thought I'd told you to get rid of those pants?" you scolded as Bucky thrusted his hips against your backside, erection still clothed. You turned your head to face him, taking your hand off his and running it over his leg. It was almost as though the tiny hairs on his thigh rose along the lines you traced with your fingers.

Gently, you tugged at the elasticated waistline of his boxers and Bucky shivered in anticipation. You tried to pull them down but you couldn't quite manage at the awkward angle.

"Bucky, help a girl out."

Behind you, Bucky smirked. He removed his hand from your bosom and slipped it between your legs, pushing down hard on your scantily clad pussy.

"BUCK!" Caught unawares, your eyes flew open and you gasped with pleasure.

"Enough help for you, doll?" he whispered smugly in your ear.

You shivered, desire penetrating your core by the pressure he was applying, massaging your folds gently, every now and then breaking through to lightly graze your clit. It wreaked havoc with your senses, the teasing, the anticipation, the tiny taste of what he had to offer you, but keeping the real feast just out of reach. You were desperate, filled with a carnal lust that made your juices flow freely soaking the silken cloth that kept him from you.

"I want you," you mumbled incoherently.

"What was that?" Bucky feigned deafness.

"I want you to fuck me," you forced yourself to enunciate.

"Doll, when did you get so confident about telling me what you want?" Bucky asked conversationally, as though you were having a casual chat, hand still caressing your crotch. "I had no idea how desperate you were."

"Clearly not quite enough for you to get your pants off though."

Bucky laughed, you loved the sound. "Eager. I like it."

He hoisted his hips off the bed and awkwardly used his free hand to push down his pants.

"Need a little help there, soldier?"

You hooked your thumb into one corner of the elastic band around his waist and tugged as Bucky did the same thing on the other side, successfully freeing his fully erect member.

Seeing him like this, engorged, veins throbbing, tip glistening made your mouth water. There was nothing you enjoyed more than looking up at your boyfriend and watching him come undone. But tonight you were feeling impatient, you didn't want him to waste time, teasing him with your lips, you wanted him pushing, pulsing inside you. Every second he wasn't thrusting into you was a second wasted. 

Twisting your arm around Bucky's, which was still securely clamped on your clit, you reached under him to give him a few strokes before leading him towards your aching center.

"Oh God, doll, I-ahhh!"

"I want you, Bucky. Now!" You didn't care how desperate you sounded.

"Show me," he growled in your ear. "Show me how much you want this." Bucky's cock was pressed up against your ass, he was grinding against you at the same intoxicating pace at which he ran his fingers back and forth over your already quivering clit.

You lifted your top leg, moaning wantonly as Bucky used the opportunity to slip his fingers under your panties. Unadulterated access to your leaking core. Once your leg was hooked around Bucky's thigh, you guided him inside you, reveling in the initial stretch as he pushed apart your glossy walls. He pushed into the hilt before holding still, willing himself not to come undone with just one thrust. He used the opportunity to pepper small kisses on your bare shoulder. 

"I love how you fill me up, Buck."

Bucky was murmuring in your ear, words you couldn't quite make out because you were so lost in the way his cock was pushing into you. "I want to be with you forever."

Forever didn't seem long enough to you in that moment, you wanted nothing more than to be lost in each other's bliss for eternity. Slowly at first, Bucky moved in and out, rolling his hips expertly, knowing exactly how to make you unravel at the seams. Each time his hips slapped against your ass it felt like he was pushing the air right out of your lungs and the pressure building inside of you was almost suffocating.

His lips ghosted your neck and ear, erratic breaths felt hot and heavy on your cheek. His tip swept across your sweet spot, slow and steady and you could feel the pressure building inside you, like a volcano ready to erupt.

"Buck-" you continued to whimper, barely able to articulate anything of meaning. But Bucky understood exactly what you meant.

He propped himself up with his free arm, changing the angle at which he plunged into you, deeper, faster, harder, making you twist and writhe in ecstasy. Bucky's hand was still pressed on your clit, but he had long since given up on any methodical administration, not that it mattered, every thrust of his cock made his hand slide across your nub. It was haphazard and completely unmethodical and felt incredible.

"I want to come, Buck!"

"Look at me, doll," Bucky whispered in your ear. "Come on beautiful. I want to see you."

"Come with me, Buck!" you choked out, turning your head as far back as you could. Your nails dug into his arms as you craned your head in your boyfriend's direction.

You couldn't see him, because your orgasm forced your eyes shut. Try as you might, you had never mastered the skill of keeping your eyes open when you came. Your bodies shook with pleasure and you desperately tried to face Bucky. You we're doing really well until he collapsed on your back, face falling into the crook of your neck.

"Oof," your remaining breath was forced from your lungs as Bucky's full weight crushed you.

"S-ry," a muffled sound emerged from behind you.

"Post orgasm suffocation isn't ideal, babe."

Bucky groaned with effort as he pushed himself away with one arm, extracting himself from your center. He lay back on his pillow and chuckled contentedly. "You're still breathing there, doll?"

"Barely."

"You ok?" His face was laced with sudden concern.

"Oh I'm more than ok. Just give me a minute to get the feeling back in my extremities."

"I'll be here when you're ready."

You lay face first on your pillow, soaking in the post orgasmic euphoria of your nocturnal activities. After a few minutes of laying in the dark in silence, you rolled over to see how your boyfriend was doing.

"Buck?"

Silence.

"Hey, Bucky!"

You were answered with a loud snore.

"That good, huh?" you said bemusedly at your boyfriend's slumbering form before pulling the duvet up to his chin. "Sweet dreams, babe."

[szynkaaa]

Black Myth: Wukong Journal Entries Part 1

Summarizing some of the journal entries that I found interesting because why not fanfic research?? who knows not me

All the journal entires can also be read on the fandom wiki page

Starting with the Mount Huaguo monkeys because I too, am wondering how they were faring after SWK died.

Circus Monkey (chapter 3 New West)

After Mt. Huaguo was destroyed, the Macaque Chief (flying monkey we fight three times in Chapter 3) led a bunch of monkeys away

arrived at Flaming Mountain (chapter 5) but a plague broke out and Macaque Chief asked for the sick monkes to be tossed into a called

This did not like that, so they decided to stop following the Macaque Chief and they wandered around

lived among humans, pretended to be monkey performers, did not make good money, so they decided to rob the audience while performing.

they killed them, stole their things and moved to the next city

The moved tot he New West, heard Macaque Chief is there too but avoiding them because he feels guilty

circus monkey became circus monks

Tenner (chapter 5 Flaming Mountain)

Centuries ago, Court razed Mt Huago once more

lots of monkey left the home after they heard of SWK death, and because SWK was buddy buddy with the Bull King they decided to go to Mt. Huago

Bull King hated monkeys because of SWK betrayal LOL, but he still gave them shelter and the monkeys were often bullied by other yaoguais

The Flaming Mountain Keeper (dude who had the hots for Princess Iron Fan) treated them with kindness and gave them food and support

Plague struck, monkeys fur fell out and they had sores and boils all over their skin spreading across their back

Macaque Chief casted the infected into the Furnace Valley. Dude said not my circus not my monkeys lol

Keeper came and saved them and cured them. Wings spread from the boils off their back

Keeper taught them how to fly and enlisted them as his minions

first thing they did was purge the Macaque Chief's camp, killed all the other monkeys, only leaving the Chief alive, who then fled to the New West

Macaque Chief (Chapter 3 New West)

Yellobrow helped Macacque Chief retracting his black wings

Macaque was a Chief under SWK

Yellowbrow offers the Macaque Chief to stay and help him rebuild the Thunderclap Temple

"If you had the abilities of that monkey who wreaked such havod in the Celestial Palace, it would have been others who would have suffered." - Yellowbrow

My personal thoughts and musings:

based on the entries from Tenner, I guess it's been more than 100 years since SWK died, I recall reading somewhere it was 270 years but I don't remember where I got that number, so if anyone knows let me know. I like that they added information on what happened to the monkeys at Mt. Huaguo. Chapter 6 felt very Unfinished (fitting title) in terms of also environment - there weren't much enemies around beside the court soldiers and bosses to fight. And when I first walked into the waterfalls cave, my first thought was how empty and abandoned it look like. There are stone tables and chairs and peaches scattered around, but it looks very much like no one has been there for a very long time.

Also the Macaque Chief is NOT the six-eared Macaque, he died in JTTW killed by SWK.

So we know that

SWK left the court and buddhahood behind to just chill with his homies

in retalition the Court started killing his monkey kind

SWK killed himself in order to be completely free

the court very likely continued to massacre and raze through Mt. Huaguo

which then led to Macaque Chief leading some other monkeys away to find a new home

When the Old Monkey is telling the stories of SWK and sending out monkeys to retrieve artifacts, we see a bunch of other monkeys holding staffs too (spot the anime protagonist lmfao)

we do not see or find any other monkeys when we arrive at Mt. Huaguo

My theories and headcanons:

Without Sun Wukong's protection, Yaoguai's run rampagne and the monkeys are not able to fully defend themselves

also when we arrive and on our way to the Stone, we get attacked by court soldiers

My theory is that because they know SWK will be reincarnated, and they want to prevent that, they have soldiers stationed there to attack whenever someone triest to obtain all armor parts and reach the Stone with SWK remains

hence also why the monkeys had to leave, because they would get attacked by court soldiers on sight

I don't think ALL of them left, we do still see monkeys at the beginning of the game

Overall when I played through Ch.6 there was a also a strong feeling of excitement of reaching the end of the journey soon, but also sad because it Mt Huaguo just felt so empty. it's supposed to be SWK's home and he wanted to leave buddhahood behind to be with his kin. To me, that already paints an image of mt Huaguo, being a lively and happy place.

I do wonder what is gonna happen next now that SWK is back. I suppose words will go out that the Monkey King is back, and that some of the monkeys will try to return again? I also wonder what the DO was thinking when traveling and having to fight his own kin. Does he know the history of his mountain? Hopefully the DLC will answer some more questions for us

And that's it about the monkeys! I'm still reading the Journal Entries, and will tackle the Tigers from Chapter 2 next!

[frostgears]

We Who Will Not Bow

It had been a difficult night.

"You're not an Academy mage. You're her," the injured guard said, defiant. "Bree the Bodiless. Bree the Banished. Bree the Bloody… go on, then. Kill me. Get it over with."

"And what purpose," she said, frustrated, "would that serve? Gods, they've been telling tales about me in my absence, I see. Hold still, I think I can fix this."

She opened a module drawer on her left arm, pulled out a silvery metal module marked with a quincunx of green jade inlay, snapped it into the socket on her left palm. Thin tentacles ventured out from an aperture, tasting the air, dripping with orange ooze. The guard shrank back against the side of the checkpoint tower.

"What are you going to do to me? What is that— aaaahh!"

Bree clasped her hand over the bolt wound on the injured guard's arm. Tentacles sank into flesh, writhing between her jointed porcelain fingers, probing under skin.

"Don't squirm, that's a burrowing bolt head, we don't want it burrowing any deeper. And these are preserved regeneration glands from a nesting bog kraken. They guard their eggs, did you know that? For up to two months. But the Great Bog is a miserable environment. There's parasites, and fungi, and necrotic plague, and so the damn things evolved these organs to channel mana into their eggs and young, almost like healing spells, to give them a fighting chance. Not against me, though. I killed this one and took its regeneration glands and doomed its clutch, just to get back one more thing I used to be able to do before that fucking archon took everything away from me… okay, wiggle your fingers…"

The guard's fingers moved. Bree took her hand away, satisfied. The tentacles retracted into her palm. She held an evil-looking bit of spiraled and fluted black metal between thumb and forefinger, rotated her wrist with a series of clicks, turning it around to inspect.

"Got it. All of it. Regrowth forced it out."

Her chest plate slid open. A lurid orange glow splashed across the burrowing bolt head, the hand holding it, and the face of the guard. She squeezed the bolt head, and it crumbled, not bending as mundane metal might, but falling to dust. The glow flared brighter.

"Gotta feed the furnace. Saved your arm, paid the cost; let's go, sweetheart, I need all the help I can get. Pick up your crossbow and follow me."

Her chest plate clacked shut.

"I'm not following you anywhere, traitor!"

Bree shrugged, then held out a hand. Her other one. No disembodied organs in the right hand, although anyone who'd actually seen what she could do with the thing built into its palm would no doubt prefer to hold the left.

"The bastards who killed your mates were Crimson Vanguard, the Crimson Pact's commandos. Real dickheads even by Pact standards. Drink to your squad's memory tomorrow that you all gave nearly as good as you got, because they don't normally leave any survivors. Plus, the Vanguard always sends a backup team. So, way I see it, either you come with me, and you might live, or you run and you probably don't, and really, which one of us is the traitor then, right?"

The guard glared at her through narrowed eyes, but took her hand. Bree hauled her to her feet. And then the guard ran for it.

"It's you! You're the traitor!" Bree yelled at the guard's rapidly receding back. "In case it wasn't clear from context!"

Her voice in this body was beautifully clear and melodic, but not particularly loud; it hadn't been built for yelling, and it didn't satisfy. Not that it would stop her from trying.

Something twanged behind her. A projectile of some kind bounced off her back.

"Nice try," she said, spinning around and folding her right hand down to reveal a hand-length metal spike nestled in a cavity in the mechanism of her arm, "my turn now." An internal spring released. The spike shot out, and did what it might be expected to do to a human skull.

She wiped fresh blood off her faceplate, afterward; tasted the crimson spatter with the tip of an intricately jointed porcelain tongue. It didn't taste like anything. It never did. Nothing did.

"You didn't have to come here," she said to the headless Vanguard commando at her feet. "Any other town. Or better yet, stay home, and don't murder anyone, and I could return the favor. But you came here armed, and it lives here, and I have this little compulsion to take care of it, yeah? 'HER TASK FOR THE TIME BEING SHALL BE TO SAFEGUARD AND PROTECT HER MOST RECENT VICTIM, UNTIL AND UNLESS SAID VICTIM MAY RELEASE HER FROM SERVICE, SATISFIED'," she said, in a low, mocking tone. "Lyric's horrified to even look at me, so I doubt satisfaction and release are on the table any time soon, right?"

No answer was forthcoming.

"Well, fuck you too, buddy. Time to go find your friends."

She sped along the main road, each step a leap, her torn and patched Academy cape flapping behind her. Everyone trying to get into the town had fled when the first Vanguard team set fire to the checkpoint, with their wagons if they could, on foot if they had to. She passed several wagons that stood abandoned, stopped briefly at another to shatter a yoke with her fist and free two terrified oxen.

Then she saw what she was looking for: you'd have to be an idiot to keep driving your wagon towards a burning guard tower, unless you were the rest of the second Vanguard team, with a wagon full of bad news.

Bree knelt in a ditch by the side of the road, screened from view by a thicket, and swapped out the regeneration gland module with another set of pickled arcane beast parts in a can, which did another thing she'd been able to do on her own before her body had been taken away.

The wagon was almost to her, close enough that her upgraded senses could clearly see the outline of a crossbow beneath the driver's plain black cloak. She tickled the stolen sun-serpent pyrosis organ with an internal actuator, and flame bloomed in the night again.

They came scrambling out, firing back, the snap of bows audible over the screaming of the horses. Disciplined, she had to give them that. Bolts hit her in the face and chest.

Not to much effect, of course. She'd once been Lyric's twin, an almost peerless servant automaton frame, built by her old business partner to last, but fundamentally also built to serve tea and look good in a maid outfit. It wasn't enough. It wasn't her. She'd made Coda upgrade her again and again, until Coda's own restorative compulsion had hit its limits, and the artificer told her there was nothing more she knew how to do. By then, she was strong. From there, she'd upgraded herself.

Three of them rushed her with swords. Close enough, Bree thought; she raised her right hand, opening the palm shutter, and whispered, "Nis zerat volut, ghran."

Her soulcatcher, the glowing point of twisted light in her right palm, was, in some sense, the reason she was here, stuck in this patchwork body with its almost nil astral presence. It was an instrument of more subtlety than power and it still worked for her when the rest of her magic had died. She'd upgraded it too. Now it didn't need a soul to be loosened from its mortal shell first.

Ghostly purple light streamed over them, and a moment later, they were down. She fed their torn-off souls to her furnace. Apparent time slowed to a crawl, the high ticking of her main escapement dropping to a steady thud, thud, thud. She snapped blades, broke bones, ripped through the remaining commandos with accelerated fury. The details were messy and irrelevant, forgotten as quickly as they came. The last two Vanguard were carrying a box. She took it from them and opened the lid.

The shock broke her concentration; her time sped up again. "Titan voidwasp larvae," she said, almost reverently. They'd been covered at the Academy, briefly, not something anyone was expected to encounter. The shiny purple-black grubs were from somewhere far, far away, and their eventual monstrous metamorphosis drank souls, just like she did now, but on a colossal scale. They were city killers.

"Here's the thing, little guys, even I don't trust myself with shit like you. Sorry. Protect and safeguard, you know how it is."

She fired her spike, retracted its cable, fired again, into each one in turn, until nothing was left but ichor and chitin splinters. Then she teased a last fractional burst out of her pyrosis module, playing a jet of flame across the mess, just in case.

That was it. There didn't seem to be much else to do. She checked for Vanguard survivors. One of them wasn't quite gone.

"Who… what… the fuck… are you?"

"Just somebody's discarded doll," Bree told him. "When the Pact interrogates your ghost, tell them Bree said not to come back." She dispatched him, as cleanly as she could.

For an indefinite time, there was no motion on the bloodied road, except for the dying flames, and the wind teasing her cape and her hair.

Silver radiance kindled beside her.

"Oh no, not you, don't you fucking start with me—"

"JUSTICE."

"—can piss up a rope!"

She ramped up her speed again and tried to strike the figure of a burning haloed skeleton with fire and the soulcatcher, both at once, but hit nothing but empty air. The archon was only as tangible as it wanted to be. She'd find a way to get at it someday, but it seemed today wasn't going to be that day.

"CEASE THIS."

"Get fucked."

"IT MAY INTEREST YOU TO KNOW THAT THE SUMMONING OF THE CHOSEN HERO HAS YET AGAIN FAILED."

"Not my fault the archmages can't get it up."

"THE HERO IS SUMMONED TO SAFEGUARD THE KINGDOM. THAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THE RITUAL. THE INVOCATIONS BESEECH THE DIVINE TO FILL A NEED AND PROVIDE A PROTECTOR IN THE TIME OF CRISIS."

"Okay, I don't care."

"IF A PROTECTOR IS ALREADY INCARNATE, THE DIVINE FEEL THEIR DUTY IS DONE. EVEN IF THE HERO IS UNAWARE OF THEIR ROLE."

"I jacked the Chosen Hero's soul and sold it to Coda and put it in a doll, right, I was there. So what, you're saying they can't do it again because Lyric's already here, even if it's a doll maid and not a hero? Tough shit, I guess. You met it, you know it isn't exactly hero material."

"YOUR ASSESSMENT IS CRUDE BUT CORRECT. IT IS NOT, AND IT WILL NOT BE. IT IS CONTENT TO SERVE AND TO ENJOY ITS NEW FORM. AND YET A HERO EXISTS. SOMEONE PROTECTS THE KINGDOM ALREADY, ALTHOUGH THEY DO NOT THINK OF IT IN SUCH TERMS. THEY DID SO AGAIN, THIS NIGHT."

"Wait."

"YOUR ACTIONS PRODUCED A HERO."

"Oh gods no."

"THE GODS WATCH. THE SKEIN OF DESTINY IS RE-COILED, A TANGLE REMOVED."

"I can't be—"

"JUSTICE MAY YET BE DONE. GOOD LUCK TO YOU."

Bree roundly cursed the archon in her annoyingly pleasant and musical voice, until it disappeared, and then another fifteen minutes for good measure, in case it felt like coming back. When it didn't, she started walking.

She looked back, once, to see the lights of the town. Somewhere back there, Coda and Lyric lived in their little shop. Lyric didn't sleep any more than Bree did. Maybe her once-twin was leaning out the window, one of its cute dresses ruffled by the night breeze. Maybe it was even looking this way.

"Well, let's face it, Bree," she said to herself, resigned. "You wouldn't have been a very good maid." □

---

prev: We Who Serve

next: We Who Are Far From Home, ch. 1: Bree 1

[lavalamprat]

Plague furnace us about half way done, time to highlight tf out of it

[gumbootillustrations]

dame katelyn de feu my beloved 😭😭😭

more bits under the cut!!

katelyn first shows up to phoenix drop towards the end of season one under similar circumstances to canon mcd - jeffory's about to be executed for treason, and she's desperately trying to get his name cleared before he dies. however, when it becomes clearer and clearer to her that zane's using him as a scapegoat, she decides to turn on him and side with aphmau and the phoenix alliance ahead of the battle for phoenix drop.

in ashes, ashes, jurors were originally ordained through the bestowal of relics - however, after they went missing a couple of centuries after the first war of the magi, they pretty much became just. super politically powerful guards until about twenty years before the start of ashes, ashes, when the high priest of o'khasis at the time (zane's predecessor) figured out a way to bestow the powers of the juror relics to the jurors without using the relics themselves. anyway, its blood magick and it essentially brands the jurors with a seven-pointed star on their foreheads as a mark of the ritual being completed. katelyn hates what the ritual has turned her into - even though long hair is lowkey pretty impractical in a fight, she keeps hers long so that her mark is hidden (jeffory did the same, and garroth will also grow his hair out a little to cover his mark). when she transforms, a lot of the saturation in her skin in hair is drained out due to the magick not being suuuper holy (in fact, the first casting of the ritual upset the balance of the universe so much that it woke up the primordial gods n they sicked a plague on o'khasis that garte would later blame on tu'lan biological warfare). additionally, because the magick of the ritual sort of like. blends in? with any magicks or witchcraft already present in the juror their juror form will reflect this - katelyn has fire magicks, so when she transforms, her hair turns into this sort of sickly pale blue fire. her fire is hot enough that it burns blue anyway, but yeah.

katelyn burns her juror armour the minute she can once everyone gets out of the irene dimension. for a while, she just wears whatever she can scrounge up from around phoenix drop, but when cadenza finds out about this she gives katelyn this outfit! it's definitely done out of the kindness of her heart, there definitely aren't any ulterior motives don't worry. it's a lot more of a mercenary-ish look compared to her juror armour, but katelyn likes it just fine - especially since a certain flame-haired seamstress with a winning smile made it especially for her.

a little headcanon i have about katelyn - i feel like even though she isn't great at sewing, having grown up in a minor noble house in o'khasis, i feel like she would have some skills with textiles. specifically, i feel like she'd knit and/or crochet in her down time! before everyone heads out to gal'ruk, she knits everyone some mittens/scarves/socks/etc. not sweaters, though - she's loathe to admit it, but she's a firm believer in the sweater curse. otherwise, nothing much changes except that she throws on a coat and calls it a day - i like to think that, similar to laurance, she runs a little hotter than most people due to her fire magicks sort of acting as a bit of an internal furnace, so she doesn't need to bundle up quite as much as the others.

her day-to-day outfit is pretty much her standard guard outfit without the armour. she does wear an underbust corset/belt/thing with a small pouch attached, though - its very useful for carrying around knickknacks n stuff. otherwise, there's not much else to really comment on? idk. i probably shouldve added in some scars on her arms but its 11:30 pm at the time im writing this n ive spent way too long on this dang ref sheet already so yeah.

i decided to change up her conqueror form quite a bit - the form i drew in my original lineup of the second war's divine warriors wasn't really katelyn n looking back on it i shouldve spent more time trying to get it right. anyway, katelyn's mother was from southern tu'la, and was from a merchant family with some distant blood ties to the royal family - katelyn is technically related to the king of tu'la, but the relation is so distant that she doesn't really consider him (or any of the tu'lan nobles, really) to be blood relations. it's through this lineage, though, that she's able to resonate with menphia's relic, although it definitely helps that she's the second war's incarnation of the conqueror. mostly, the design notes from her first conqueror design remain the same - all i've really done is change the colour palette.

aaaand some headshots. i haven't exactly worked out how she got her facial scars - the big one was probably gotten on her first major assignment as a juror. however, it's nasty enough that when it healed it sort of fucked up her facial muscles - the scar tissue has permanently warped the right side of her mouth into a grimace, so anytime she makes a facial expression it's pretty lopsided (it's especially noticeable when she smiles). also, i changed the titling system for the jury to be more similar to the commonwealth knighthood system? like as much as i think "lady katelyn" is sick as fuck, the fact that it's the same title used for the female spouses of lords just sorta,,, didn't sit right? i guess? so yeah. dame katelyn.

anyway, feel free to ask questions if u want! :D

[rastronomicals]

10:58 PM EST November 6, 2022:

Altar of Plagues - "Earth: As A Furnace" From the album White Tomb (April 14, 2009)

Last song scrobbled from iTunes at Last.fm

File under: Fiercely Irish Post-Black Metal

[talesof-old]

sleeping in | j.p.

pairing(s): james potter x reader

warning(s): none really, brown!james (no specified ethnicity, just that he has darker skin), fluff, not my best work but i’m trying to get back into writing more frequently

word count: 623

masterlist

holiday corner series

sleepy, snowy mornings with james potter

You came to slowly, fighting your body’s natural urge to wake. Sunlight shone in through the windows, bright and blinding as it reflected off the fresh fallen snow. Christmas was just days away, and the celebrations were to be held at your’s and James’ place. Piles of unhung garland filled your living room, last minute decorations you’d forgotten to put up nearly a month ago.

You shifted in bed. Pressed against your back, James was a human furnace unwilling to be parted from you. One of his arms was wrapped tightly around your waist and used to keep your body flush to his. You smiled. In sleep, he looked so peaceful. Nightmares rarely plagued him, instead leaving his face still and calm all throughout the night. Despite yourself, you raised a hand and brushed a haphazard curl off of his forehead. His eyelids twitched, lips pursing in a small pout that sent your heart singing.

Dark eyelashes fluttered over unblemished brown cheeks. You turned in his embrace, nuzzling into the crook of his neck while pressing kisses to the exposed, warm skin. James sighed, arm tightening around your form, squeezing you to him.

“Morning.” It was a soft murmur spoken against your temple, the syllables slurred and heavy with sleep. You pressed a kiss to his collarbone. James responded with a kiss to your temple, then resting his cheek against your head. The edge of his jaw dug into your scalp but you couldn’t find it in yourself to care.

His warmth cocooned you, lulling you into a half asleep state of being, malleable and limp in his arms.

“It’s snowing.” You blinked, pulling your head out of the safety of his neck to face him. A lazy grin was plastered on his face, doe eyes half lidded as he regarded you. Moments passed, eyes clearing as you continued to stare at him, body tingly with adoration.

“Mmm. I know. Checked the weather last night.” He huffed dramatically, rolling over and pulling you with him.

You yelped as the blankets shifted, exposing slivers of your right side to the freezing air. Goosebumps lined your flesh, biting as James chuckled beneath you.

“You’re evil, James Potter.” He reached around you and righted the blankets, patting them down to make sure you were completely covered.

“Me? Evil? Never.” You huffed and laid your head on his chest, staring out the window to gaze at snow covered evergreens. The two of you stayed there, suspended in the quiet, limbs tangled together as the seconds turned to minutes.

Your eyelids fluttered shut.

By the time you woke up again, it was to the sound of a kettle whistling. You whined a little as you emerged from your warm cocoon, reaching to slip on a pair of thick wool socks and padding through the house. A fresh start, James had said, after everything. Neither of you wanted to stay in his late parents’ house, but you didn’t want anything big to look after either. A small cottage in the countryside was perfect.

He caught sight of you as you entered the kitchen, all messy hair and haphazard clothing. You smiled as he offered you a mug of coffee with a fond expression, pouring tea for himself. He set the kettle down on an unused eye. Wrapping your hands around the warm mug, you leaned against the kitchen counter and cast an apprehensive look towards the garlands.

“Think we’ll be able to handle that today?”

James saddled up to your side, one arm slung around your hips. Even out of bed, he radiated heat. You leaned into him.

“Shouldn’t be too hard, yeah? We’ll make quick work of it.” He pressed a kiss to your shoulder.

“If not, I’ll just get Padfoot and Moony to do it.”

-

i’m trying to keep these short because otherwise i put off doing them

[yaeggravate]

I wanted to collect my thoughts on the newly released book Perinheri, focusing on the usual overlooked suspects such as Kaeya, the Seelie and the connection to Princess Fischl.

TL;DR: Kaeya is (probably?) not cursed because he's half-Seelie

I strongly recommend reading the book first, which you can buy in Fontaine's book shop. Link to the official website here.

Perinheri is "based on a legendary story known throughout Khaenri'ah, but there are none left who can verify this." Ok, first of all, Kaeya and Zhongli are right there, you even put their names in the book!! Second of all, Khaenri'ah is only ever referred to as the "Kingdom" throughout the rest of the story. 🤨 Most likely because it went by a different name back then.

I think most people are aware this book is probably connected to Arlecchino because of her constellation Ignis Purgatorius which is Latin for Cleansing Fire. In the book, the titular Perinheri is made to crawl through a dark corridor filled with ash. He is pulled out of the other side, "reborn".

This fits with depictions of Purgatory:

The faithful dead go through the furnace and once purified ascend towards Heaven. Some of the faithful are plucked by angels, the result of intercessory prayers.

That being said, I don't really want to dig into the Arlecchino connection too much, since we'll find out what her deal is in a few weeks anyway, and with story spoilers running rampant, it won't be much fun anymore.😮‍💨

FALLEN SEELIE

But isn't it fascinating how one of the characters' name is Angelica who guided Perinheri out of a subterranean realm?

Kaeya has connections to the Seelie who are equated to angels in the game. Brief summary here, but the meat of it is that Kaeya most likely has Seelie roots and Nabu Malikata's last name can mean "angels" plural in Arabic. This wordplay tells us Angelica is without a doubt a Seelie, or at the very least someone belonging to the angel category. (The Jinn, for example, are descendants of the Seelie.)

What's funny is that Kaeya owns a book called The Adventures of Angelos, that he deliberately showed to the Traveler. Dude has been dropping hints since the very beginning! It's almost as if he's important to the plot or something.

Perinheri reveals the curse laid on Khaenri'ah is not unique to them and affects those who have forsaken or betrayed their god. There are a few other instances in Teyvat's history that have people turning into beasts, but no further information was given which made it hard to tell how it was connected to the curse of the Cataclysm.

Ukko, the last survivor of the fall of Sal Vindagnyr, was turned into a Frostarm Lawachurl. His final recorded words were of him asking for the destruction of the world as a last middle finger to the gods.

Didn't work.

Shiruyeh, Liloupar's grandson, fell into the abyss thanks to the behated lamp's machinations, and brought back a plague to Gurabad, which turned his people into wild creatures without faces.

Something interesting is that one of the six sins of the Akademiya is to revere gods without acts of devotion. Perhaps the other sins are connected to the conditions of the curse as well:

Cyno's Character Story 5 To prevent researchers from being devastated by their own knowledge, the sages laid out six cardinal sins. They held that all the crimes in this world derive from these six sins. The first is to interfere with human evolution; The second is to tamper with life and death; The third is to delve beyond the universe; The fourth is to investigate the origin of words; The fifth is to revere gods without acts of devotion; The sixth is to attempt the forbidden and fear none.

According to Angelica, the "pure-blooded" (for lack of better word) aristocracy of the Kingdom persists because any offspring they have with those who forsook their god will be affected by the curse as soon as they venture outside.

The witch, Angelica, explained thus: "Hleobrant is the descendant of those who forsook their god and came to the Kingdom. This is why the Kingdom's obstinately pure-blooded aristocracy persists. This is the price of betraying your own god."

The implication here is that the Kingdom seems to be protecting its people within its borders. Those who have come from another world like Perinheri are also curse free.

Angelica herself is not affected by any curse. It's hard to say if she was telling the truth here but she claims to have come from a nation that was defeated by Zhongli. Keep in mind, it's possible that she was only saying this to cast herself in a more favorable light by disguising herself as a fellow god-hater.

Whatever the case, since Angelica is most likely a Seelie, who were cast down by the heavens for reasons unknown, we have to analyze her words a bit more carefully.

The Seelie were also cursed after all.

Arama: Seelies are just empty husks that race left behind. This is because they were born with a curse: If they fall in love with Nara, they shall lose their intelligence and strength, and their bodies will regress.

Explains why Angelica led Hleobrant on and to his demise. Not unlike a certain other Seelikata we know.

Angelica: As for you, Perinheri, you are one who drifted there. Thus, you bear no such curse. You may not have the nobility to shoulder a world, but you too have your own destiny. And as for me? I betrayed no one, not for a moment, until my god died, so I too bear this curse not. But you now see who I truly am, yes?

"Until my god died." If Angelica is a Seelie, then who would her god be? Istaroth? A moon sister? Both? Something to think about…

As for why Angelica did all of that...No idea. Maybe she was just being a little silly. Haha, get it? Because Seelie means silly. But guiding people with a promise of a reward only to lead them into a trap sounds eerily similar to what Kaeya did in his story quest... and in the manga.

It's because he's silly 😂!

ANGELS GEORG

How exactly Kaeya is connected to Seelie is unknown but the character of Kaeya is partly based on Hagen/Högni who is himself half-human/half-dwarf or half-elf. If Kaeya is also half-human then mayhaps the other half could be Seelie.

If Kaeya is half-Seelie, it would explain why he isn't cursed: Angelica. Angelica never betrayed her god. If Kaeya's "pure-blood" father, had a child with a Seelie who never betrayed their god, then maybe the curse wouldn't transfer to Kaeya. This is just one suggestion because we have no idea why the curse gives immortality to pure-blood Khaenri'ahns and if it can be passed on or not.

(As an aside, Kaeya's father is most likely cursed. Kaeya said his hand writing was atrocious, which implies his hands were losing dexterity like Chlothar's.)

I'm aware of the technicalities and the plotholes here such as "uhhh aren't Seelie all empty husks" and "don't they regress if they fall in love"?? Well, we know at least there were survivors out there, meaning there might be loopholes. Columbina, Nabu Malikata, and maybe even Nicole are all characters who weren't husked to floating eye state.

And of course there is Angelica, whose name I joked about being Kaeya's mom's name long before this stupid book came out. 😮‍💨 RUNNING OUT OF IDEAS, ARE WE, HOYOVERSE EMPLOYEE READING MY BLOG

(It could also be that Kaeya's mom was a descendant (Jinni) or scion of the Seelie instead, which I have talked more about here.)

Another alternative is that he's something akin to Perinheri: a child who drifted from some destroyed world. This doesn't seem likely though. Kaeya has the patented star shaped pupils that are more prominent in official art than in the game.

I will say however, that Kaeya's pupils are very different from other Khaenri'ahns such as Dain, Halfdan and Clothar. His pupils are similar to Pierro's which are also "solid". Maybe Pierro is in a similar situation as Kaeya.

Kaeya is in part based on the changeling prince from Midsummer Night's Dream. Changeling in this context means a human child raised by fairies... The title of the Harbingers' trailer, Winter Night's Lazzo, is probably a nod to this play…

In Scottish folklore, the Seelie have a darker counterpart: the Unseelie. Unseelie haven't been mentioned in the game yet, but it's likely they do exist. Perhaps they're the fallen angels, abyssal creatures or even the pure-blood Khaenri'ahns. It's hard to say without more information.

The Seelie Court is ruled by Titania, the Fairy Queen from Midsummer Night's Dream. While the Unseelie Court is their cold, somber counterpart, described as a winter's night...

Fischl's princess outfit is called Immernachtstraum which is also a nod to Midsummer Night's Dream. It's like Fischl and Kaeya belong to the Seelie, also known as the Summer Court, while the Tsaritsa belongs to the Unseelie, the Winter Court.

Getting off track here, but whatever's going on with Kaeya is connected to Princess Fischl and it's difficult to talk about either of them without acknowledging their strange bond.

Lastly,

Kaeya's Character Story 4 Sinister thoughts flashed through Kaeya's mind, and he simply smirked: "This world is truly… fascinating."

Why say world, why!? He just had to throw that in to confuse us even more!

Recently I found out that Kaeya took the traveler to the nameless island on his birthday. No one would go to such lengths if the place wasn't important to them. This island has a ravaged moon-or sundial belonging to the God of Time. The platform on the island can also be found in two places in Dragonspine; the Mural Room and the Secret Room. What the purpose of these things are is unclear, (my guess is elevators), but the Mural Room just so happens to have a painting of a giant angel on it.

The fact that the island is shrouded in mist, hidden from the map, implies someone very powerful brought Kaeya and his father to Mondstadt. If Kaeya's mom was a Seelie then perhaps she was the one who brought them above ground. I can also see a scenario in which a fellow brethren of hers might have helped out.

Such as, I don't know, someone with connections to the Seelie and Dawn Winery. Like Nicole or Columbina, who just so happens to be part of the Fatui… Someone must have given Crepus that delusion after all. 🤷🏽‍♀️

(Venti was taking a power nap at the time, so it can't be him.)

IMMERNACHTREICH

A while back I proposed Fischl might have been a ruler of Khaenri'ah. And now Perinheri has dropped more crumbs unto our laps.

Princess Fischl is the ruler of the Immernachtreich, which is appointed as the future realm of Fischl. This is an important distinction because it means this Realm wasn't always hers. The Immernachtreich is described as an otherworldly place where everything will eventually flow into.

Mitternachts Waltz Everything in this world must pass through the doorway of their destruction unto the future kingdom of the Prinzessin. In the silence of her pitch-dark Nachtgarten would they find a place to slumber.

Flowers for Princess Fischl: Phantasmagoria Every good, bright and noble thing must eventually fall to inexorable entropic destruction, and the final destination of the universe is the realm-in-waiting of the Prinzessin, Immernachtreich.

More About Fischl: To condemn the guilty, to sanctify the just, and to draw all castaway dreams into the embrace of the infinite Immernachtreich.

Something about that sounds familiar!

Perinheri Vol 1 Due to the Kingdom's unique position, things from outside this world were always leaking into it. The Kingdom's weapons would wipe out the calamities slipping in, but what of all the other objects? Such as, say, a child who may have come from some destroyed world?

A child from a destroyed world leaking into an underground Kingdom and the Immernachtreich, another subterranean realm, the doorway of their destruction.

Both realms are welcoming to castaways.

The annoying thing is that it's unclear if Khaenri'ah is the same as the Immernachtreich since Fischl describes her Kingdom as a "small and forbidden paradise". Perhaps Fischl created a subset within the underground realm that kept people safe. At least for a while.

She did after all create a Sommernachtgarten, or Summer Night Garden, that is referenced in the domain Midsummer Courtyard. See, I didn't just mention the Seelie Summer Courts for no reason; Fischl might've been the princess of the Seelie/Angels. But there's little else to corroborate that other than the wings on her back and the Seelie like emblem on her waist...

Anyway, Fischl can see the threads of fate and has seen the causality of worlds too numerous to count. As we all know, she created another universe and founded paradise. This other universe might be a new branch that split off from the parent timeline.

In other words a parallel universe.

These branches are referenced in the description for Mitternachts Waltz, so I'm not just pulling this out of my ass.

Even the branch of the tree of time upon which the great and glorious Reman Republic nested would be cut off in the end, such that the nation founded by the other twin child of the wolves might rule.

Perhaps this is also what Perinheri's world was. Maybe the various destroyed worlds were branches that got cut off...

Another interesting similarity is that Fischl ran into a bunch of fate-resisting royals who devolved into beasts after denying her status....

Flowers for Princess Fischl (I): End Time Zersetzung When the lone pilgrimaging princess reached the kingdom of eternal twilight, the fate-resisting royals chose to deny everything in their desperation. They refused to recognize Fischl's noble stature and mission as the princess of the Immernachtreich; denied their 13,000-year lineage as a branch of the royal family; and forsook their own nobility and restraints as humans… devolving into clumsy and vicious beasts.

Huh, it's just like Angelica said 🤷🏽‍♀️. Kingdom of Eternal Twilight might be the "Kingdom" from Perinheri and the fate-resisting royals is code for those who forsook their gods. However, Fischl wasn't without sympathy and took it on herself to protect the Immernachtreich.

Narrator: The Prinzessin harbored much sympathy for all living things, and wished to never see them in pain. She harnessed the power of darkness and dreams to weave the night, and gave it the task to safeguard all living things. The people celebrated and worshiped the Prinzessin's authority, and followed her call to migrate to the sacred land that would eventually be known as the Immernachtreich. We established a nation on the Holy Land, revered the Prinzessin as The Absolute One, and introduced poetry, theater, and adventure to the Kingdom, laying the groundwork for the Immernachtreich.

One final stray thought:

That giant crying left eye on the cover may or may not be the same as Fischl's left Auge der Verurteilung, which caused her great agony due to its ability to pierce through the heart of all truths.

It could also be Fischl's enemy, the World Beast, a night-patrolling beast named "World", who casts a greedy eye on all dreams...

Perinheri The crimson moon, hanging high in the pitch-dark night sky, suddenly turned around, revealing itself to be a titanic, horrified eye.

About Us: Shooting Down the World Beast You seem to be troubled...? Oh traveler, you need not be perplexed. With my left eye, this "Auge der Verurteilung" that penetrates the threads of karma, I keep watch over your fate; with Oz's crow-eyes that have witnessed the nirvana of a thousand worlds, he observes your way forward. If the ferocious night-patrolling beast named "World" casts a greedy eye on your dream, then I will shoot it down with my Magic Arrow of Holy Retribution!

[fawnfictions]

yipee a request open!!

So, I've read about the night comforts you made. So,, I'mma ask the opposite one (the reader comforts them back)

Also a gn!reader and seperately!

night comforts, 2

— wukong & macaque, gn!reader

original: night comforts

this was sent back in september, im so sorry omg ;;

i've been excited to write this since it came in, though LOL they deserve to be comforted, god knows they need it.

;; fluff, comfort & slight angst ?? cuddles make it better, though <3

MACAQUE

- has nightmares a lot more often than Wukong, this man has had like no closure for anything in his life <//3

- he'd be having flashbacks to the fight with Wukong that ended in his death, working under LBD, arguing with Wukong, Wukong in general...... etc etc

- as much as he somewhat does need sleep, he avoids it like the plague.

- 'too much to do, not enough time' mindset, and not wanting to face his past through his dreams.

- it's going to be a WHILE before you catch him sleeping around you, his 'can't be vulnerable around others' mindset is worse than Wukong's, and that's saying something.

- he'd have to be SUPER comfortable and extra tired to doze off with you around.

- it'd probably be after a long day, possibly where he's been in a fight, or got annoyed with someone, and he's found himself laying down in your arms while you quietly talk to/at him about your day.

- at first, you think it's sweet that he's fallen asleep with you, knowing that he was tired.

- his glamour is gone, with all six ears on display, along with his scarring.

- you're almost too busy admiring him to notice it, but quiet whimpers catch your attention to his face, a deep frown with scrunched eyebrows.

- it doesn't take you long to wake him up, to which he almost immediately flinches away from you (if he falls off the couch/bed and onto the floor, just pretend he didn't).

- he's obviously upset after the nightmare, so you coax him into calming down enough to talk about it.

- you just lay there, listening to him and occasionally nodding along to make a relevant comment/insult to Wukong while giving him a little space, holding his hand.

- his tail unconsciously brushes against your leg every minute or so, he finds it grounding.

- all that emotional garbage gets him tired again, so after cuddling up to him again, and moving onto a lighter conversation (after making him promise to talk more about it, to find better solutions to his nightmares, in the morning) you both find your way back to sleep in each others arms.

- he definitely feels like a bit of weight is off his chest, and trusts you a lot more afterwards.

- suddenly, you're his lucky charm!! he jokes that he only gets a good nights sleep if you're with him (lowkey believes it too).

- next morning though, talk it through with him to at least TRY to talk to Wukong, and figure things out between them some more >:(

- he'll be reluctant, but pinkie promise him you'll be there to back him up and he might just consider it (but he wouldn't mind going back to old times with his best friend).

WUKONG

- like i'd stated in the previous headcanons (link above for those that haven't read it ^^) he doesn't have constant nightmares, but he's been THROUGH IT; so it's safe to say that he still gets his fair share of them.

- his nightmares would probably include memories of fighting Macaque, being in the mountain or the furnace, being unable to protect Tripitaka, the Brotherhood, etc etc.

- being immortal and all, he doesn't actually need to sleep as often as most people, much less AROUND others (the great sage can't be so vulnerable around just anyone!).

- this doesn't mean he avoids constant cuddles from you, however.

- unfortunately, one of the first times he found himself accidentally falling asleep around you, had him as prey to a nightmare.

- you had found yourself drifting off to sleep on the couch while watching some corny Monkey King movie with the mentioned demon himself.

- however, you were pulled from unconsciousness by a strong grip on your shirt, and a limb thumping against your leg..?

- the monkey man that'd fallen asleep beside you was barring his teeth in his sleep, his tail moving erratically.

- waking him up, depending on his dream, he may lash out on you; but he comes to his senses before he actually does any damage.

- he's very apologetic about that, but will immediately try to brush everything off and get you back to sleep.

- nuh-uh, you aren't taking ANY of that.

- he doesn't like talking about his feelings, much less ones that come from bad memories.

- whether you pester him until he spills or not, is up to you; but he should probably talk to someone about his nightmares at some point !

- he'd be stubborn about falling back asleep, afraid that he'd just have another nightmare and disrupt your sleep again.

- honestly, just cuddle up to him and give him head scratches, it'll knock him out in minutes.

- he's a sucker for being held in moments like this, wrapping his tail around you to pull you closer despite there being no space between you two anyways, your arms wrapped around his neck and your fingers carding through his hair ...

- next morning though, he's happily laying there, waiting for you to wake up – only to immediately be forced into a therapy session the minute you open your eyes.

- okay, okay; maybe you aren't THAT confrontational about it.

- he's pretty quick to break and let it all out under your caring stare and gentle touches, though.

- just ground him through it, rubbing your fingers over his hands, and listen to his awkward rambles – he'll appreciate it :)

- afterwards though, he finds himself wanting to fall asleep around you more, feeling safe and comfortable to an extent that his nightmares aren't as often, and; if he does have one, he knows you'll be right there to ground him <3